A Throne of Stars
by SongofSammael
Summary: He really doesn't know what possessed him. Falling into an alternate reality came as a shock, but now he was being hounded by pirates of all things. Sure, he stopped Ace from dying, but does that straw-hat brat really have to keep following him around? Not to mention the man he saved keeps trying to molest him... SLASH/Yaoi - Ace/Harry/Luffy
1. Of Veils and Death

_AN: This… I don't know where it came from. My brain forced my fingers to start typing, and this was the result. Technically, this is my first foray into the One Piece world and I can only hope that I do it justice… with plenty of boy love ;)_

_**Summary:**__ He really doesn't know what possessed him. Falling into an alternate reality came as a shock, but now he was being hounded by pirates of all things. Sure, he stopped an execution, but does that straw-hat brat really have to keep following him around? Not to mention the man he saved keeps trying to molest him... _

_**Pairing(s): **__Ace/Harry/Luffy_

_**Warnings: **__ if you haven't guessed, this is going to be yaoi, but not just any yaoi – a threesome! Ace/Harry/Luffy. If you do not like this, simply click the back button. Also, I happen to use a lot of swear words when I write. Violence in general is also a must._

_This is rated T for now, but will be moved up to M for later chapters. I hope you enjoy ;)_

1

_(Of Veils and Death)_

It is a very well-known fact that magic works in mysterious ways. Definitely in ways that nobody would expect, and Harry's situation would most definitely attest to that. He honestly did know how he ended up in this position. Hell, he was trying to figure out if it was a good thing or not, and currently he was leaning more towards _not._

He had to wonder whether the gods were out to get him. Sure, he's pissed off a lot of omnipotent beings in the past, but surely not to the point where they'd go so far as to do _this?_ Of all things?

Alternate realities? Hermione had told him plenty of theories that she and the other Unspeakables had come up with in the Department of Mysteries, but it wasn't as if he had actually listened to them. A lot. Well he got the gist at least. The world that they live in was merely one among many others – both alike, and… not so alike.

So that just leaves him with a question – how in the name of Merlin did he end up in one?

Least of all, why was he now the hostage of a group of dirty, sick looking men who claimed to be pirates?

_Oh right. Now I remember. I agreed to help some dead guy and got pushed here without so much as a 'by your leave'. _

As he stared up from where he was slumped and tied up on the dirty deck of a ship, looking into the eyes of the supposed 'captain', he wondered whether it was worth it to spell the ropes off of him, knock everyone unconscious, and escape before even more attention was drawn to him.

Those thoughts were pushed from his mind when a panicked shout distracted everyone, and suddenly, an even bigger ship was looming over them.

A very, very big ship.

_Well fuck._ Harry thought as the pirates around him took up arms, completely forgetting about him. _I don't know if this is a blessing… or a really bad turn of events._

_~Two hours earlier~_

Harry was trying very hard not to be angry.

Sure, he'd given the Minister of Magic permission to call upon him whenever he needed help, but the timing could have been a lot better. It wasn't often he actually got a break from work, and as soon as he'd settled down in front of the fire, a bottle of firewiskey in one hand and a rare book on ancient Egyptian glyphs in the other, the cheery orange flame turned green with the sign of a floo call.

The minister's voice, usually a calm, deep baritone, was coloured with panic.

So Harry realised that yes, it was a desperate situation, but by Morgana, the timing! He had been itching to read that book – given to him as a gift from Bill Weasley – for months now!

And Kingsley just had to be calling him about some ruckus in the Department of Mysteries that was getting out of control, and the Unspeakables were being overwhelmed. Overwhelmed? How on earth could they be getting overwhelmed when they had both Hermione and Luna in their employment?

He didn't question though, because Minister Kingsley's voice really did sound desperate, so he promised to be on his way as quickly as possible. When he arrived not a few moments later, inside the Minister's office, he found the wizard looking rather shaky, and immediately made his way down the DoM. The corridors were full of rushing people, and the wizard realised quickly that there was an evacuation taking place.

Evacuating the Ministry of Magic? Damn, it really did look like a cause for alarm.

He met with Hermione halfway down.

"Oh Harry, Kingsley called you? Dammit, I told him not to bother you and that we had it under control!"

Harry listened to her in a bemused silence. She looked stressed out and frazzled, and while it was an amusing sight – it was rare that Hermione used harsh language – he knew that by the way Kingsley had been acting, and by the way Hermione was acting, things were definitely not under control.

"Hermione," he stopped her from storming past. "What's going on?"

"Oh, nothing much," She fretted. "You really should just go home and enjoy your day off."

Harry didn't budge, just stared at her with intense green eyes. For a moment, Hermione resisted stubbornly and refused to look him directly in the eyes. They were being jostled by panicked ministry workers as they got ready to evacuate, but no one paid any attention to them. Finally, she broke, and looked him in the eyes.

Harry was taken aback by the fear he saw in her brown orbs. The last time he'd seen her this afraid was back when they were seventeen and hunting down Voldemort's hocruxes.

"The Veil is acting up." She said it coldly, as if she was trying to show as little emotion as possible. "It's already sucked up several of the other Unspeakables. The Minister ordered an execution as a worst case scenario, and well… you see everyone evacuating."

Harry frowned. That really was some troublesome news. "What about Luna?"

Hermione took in a shuddering breath. "She saw it coming a moment too late. It'd already sucked up several wizards before we noticed, and she managed to evict everyone else from the Death Chamber before it could get anyone else. She's still down there, trying to put it into a sort of stasis. But I don't know how well it's going…" She trailed off, tears building in her eyes, before they suddenly hardened. She glared at him, and before Harry could react, punched him in the chest. "Dammit Harry James Potter! You weren't supposed to be here! I clearly told Kingsley NOT to call you! Ugh, when I get my hands on him-"

"Hermione!" Harry cut her off. He grabbed her arms, vaguely registering that he was still wearing gloves and thankful that he remembered to put them on, and shook her gently to stop her angry tirade. "Why wasn't I supposed to be told?"

Hermione bit her lip. "Luna said that if you came, bad things would happen. Kingsley must have called you because of your being… you-know-what, and your expertise in sealing. While I admit that your sealing runes may come in handy in this situation, Luna said that if you went down into the Death Chamber, something bad would happen. You of all people know that we should listen to her predictions, so – Harry Potter _don't you dare!"_

The wizard had turned on his heeled boots; his black robes billowing around him in reminisce of his former potions master, and made his way down the hall in the direction of the Department of Mysteries. He heard Hermione shout after him, but was pulled away in the torrent of ministry officials.

Harry had a bad feeling. Hermione's warning had reached him, but he wasn't going to listen to her. Luna was still down there, and like hell he was just going to leave her there and not try to help. Hermione was right about the fact that his seals may come in handy – if the Veil was indeed going haywire, then maybe he'd be able to Seal it into a frozen state or something before it did any more damage.

And he was intimately familiar with the Death Chamber after all. Being Master of Death had its perks some times, and he had found himself visiting that chamber numerous times in the past. He was pretty sure the Veil liked him, so maybe it would listen to him.

Or something. Harry had his doubts.

He got into the empty golden elevator.

~o~

The Department of Mysteries was deserted.

With a grimace, Harry started to make his way through the entrance chamber towards the door he knew would lead to the death chamber. He checked his pockets, feeling his shrunken trunk – kept there out of habit due to the unpredictable nature of his job. That done, he stopped before the door to the death chamber and pressed his hand against it.

It didn't open.

Frowning, Harry could detect the faint pulses of foreign magic keeping it closed. It took him a moment to recognise the traces belonged to Luna, and he had to admire her determination to keep everything locked in. Or out.

He tried sending a tendril of his magic through, hoping that it recognised something familiar and would follow his intentions of allowing him access. It didn't work however, and with a firm shove, Luna's magic pushed his out.

"Well then." Harry said to himself. "We're going to do this the hard way."

Though his wand was holstered to his right wrist, he didn't go for it. Deftly, he removed the thin black glove of his right hand and placed the palm flat against the door.

He didn't look at the limb, but even still he could see the silver lines that crisscrossed across the skin. _Such an ugly sight_, he thought absently. Grimacing, he activated the seal on his hand and said in a clear voice, "Open."

There was a shudder, and in an instant Luna's magic was overwhelmed. The door swung open with an ominous creak, and with a bracing breath, Harry entered.

It was empty, and the Veil was glowing with a bright white light. For a moment Harry found himself mesmerised by the sight. He heard the enticing whispers calling out to him, beckoning for him to come closer, but Harry knew better. He pressed his lips together in a thin line and replaced his glove, putting the runes out of sight, and slowly made his way down the steps.

"You shouldn't have come."

Luna's voice startled him, and Harry berated himself for not noticing her when he first entered. She was standing right in front of the veil, her back to Harry, staring at it. He noticed the way he voice held a deep sadness, and Harry wondered what she saw. Luna's predictions were few and far between, but they always turned out right. Maybe she'd seen him die?

But that was ridiculous. Harry couldn't die; he was the master of death. Whatever the Veil would do – Oh. Oh dear. Now he got it. The Veil was an embodiment of death. He was the master of death. Maybe his time had finally come?

Surprisingly, it didn't instil fear into his heart. He remember, all those years ago when he was willing to sacrifice himself for his loved ones. He'd done it with little thought.

Well. He'd done it once. He could do it again, if it meant his friend's safety.

Harry had done a lot of bad things in the past. His job wasn't exactly the cleanest one, and even though he enjoyed it for the most part, he knew that he was no longer the embodiment of Light that everyone thought he was. Things had changed. He'd grown up from the terrified eleven year old boy who knew nothing of wizards and magic –even death, despite his living conditions at the time.

He's killed. He's stolen. From bad people and good people. To be honest, he was getting rather tired too.

Harry was powerful. Probably the most powerful man alive to date and that power was a heavy burden. He wouldn't needlessly throw his life away, but if his time had come… he wouldn't fight.

"Am I going to die?" Harry asked. He made his way towards the silent, blonde woman who stared at the veil with wide silvery eyes. Those eyes – all knowledgeable – penetrated him to the core.

"I don't know." She said.

That stumped him. "You… don't know."

She nodded in confirmation before turning back to look at the veil. "It wants you. That's all I know. I had hoped you would not come, but I knew you would. What happens now I know not."

"But you know everything." It came out weakly. Knowing that he was going to die would have put him at ease, but not knowing only left room for a whole fuck load of uncertainties and theories. Harry didn't like not knowing things. In his line of work it got people killed.

"Not this." Luna murmured. "You will go. I cannot stop you." She turned to him once again and smiled. "It is your destiny."

And Harry really hated words like fate and destiny. But if Luna said so… He asked, "Will I come back?"

Her smile turned mischievous. "I don't know."

_Liar_, Harry thought. That would answer everything, wouldn't it? He sighed and shook his head, turning to the Veil. He could hear the voices more clearly, all of them whispering for him to come to them, to join them. Now that he was this close he could fell a tugging in his chest, pulling him forwards.

Who was he to deny the whims of a greater power?

"I guess this is it then." He stated. Luna hummed in agreement. "Look after my house, ok? Tell Hermione I'm sorry."

"I may not need to." She said. Confused, Harry turned to her questioningly, but she still held that mysterious smile. "Go on Harry. Your destiny awaits."

The wizard snorted. "Yeah. Destiny. I'm not dancing to the whims of another prophecy am I?"

She didn't answer, and he realised she had turned her back and was walking away.

Harry shook his head in exasperation. _Luna never changes._

He walked up the stone steps until he stood before the archway. The veil moved in an empty breeze, the whispers blending together into an almost white noise. Harry grimaced. Being this close to a source of great power was causing the seals all over his body to act up, and the burning sensation was becoming quite uncomfortable. He spared a brief thought about what was going to happen, wondered vaguely about what Luna had said, and whether or not this was just one big mistake.

But hey, he was Harry Potter. He was known for fucking shit up constantly.

Hermione would have called him an idiot, and would again point out that he had a 'saving-people' complex. But was he really saving anyone by doing this?

Or maybe… he'd simply gotten bored. He had friends. He was well respected. His job was steady, if not a bit sinister. Maybe it was the lack of adventure?

Maybe he just needed to get laid.

Laughing softly, and before he could think twice, Harry closed his eyes and walked into the Veil.

In the empty chamber, Luna's voice echoed.

"_Life and Death work in mysterious ways. Much in a similar way to magic. Isn't that right, Roger? Your son's time hasn't come. Not yet, at least."_

~o~

There was no pain. The whispering had stopped. And for the second time in his life, Harry found himself in the empty station of King's Cross. Well, the one associated with Death at least, only this time there was no old man with sparkling blue eyes to greet him.

Instead, there was man with a rather amazing moustache, and a wild, fierce grin. He was tall, broad shouldered and looked to be well built. For a moment, Harry felt a pang of familiarity – there was just something about this man that reminded him of Sirius. He shook the feeling away and eyed the man warily.

"If you're death, I expected you to be more… old and skeletal looking."

The man blinked for a moment, before his grin widened and he threw back his head and laughed. "No kid, I'm not death, although you are here because of 'em."

Harry resisted the urge to point out that he was far from being a kid, but decided better because pissing of an unknown entity may result in bad things happening. Besides, the man looked to be agreeable, and he had to be here for a reason. Blinking at the still chuckling man, Harry asked, "Then who are you? And why was I called here?"

The man's smile really did look feral. "My name is Gol D. Roger, and you are here because Death owes me a favour. He sent you to complete this favour."

Harry felt a tad bit of irritation. "Don't I have a choice in that?"

The man hummed. He seemed to radiate amusement. "No, not really. I was assured that you would be more than willing though, if you would just hear me out."

The wizard sighed. _Yeah, my title may be Master of Death, but if anything, I'm nothing more than a pet. Or a slave. Whatever is appropriate at the time._ "Yeah, sure, shoot."

"You're aware of there being other worlds similar to your own, correct?" Harry nodded. "Well, this station can lead to any which one, so long as you have the appropriate guide. Basically, I need your help."

"I gathered that. What do you need me to do?" Patience never had been Harry's strong point, and he berated himself inwardly.

The man only chuckled. "My son's gotten himself into a might bit of trouble… I need you to fix things. It's not his time to die, not yet at least, and I was told that you have a knack for these sort of things."

_Oh yes. The saving people thing_. "You could say that."

Roger's grin dimmed a bit. "Ace is a good boy. But there are forces at work that mere mortal men have no chance of fighting against. That's why I need you there. Protect him for me. I had an old… friend doing the best he can, but he's only human."

"Hey, I'm plenty human." Harry defended himself, if not a bit weakly.

Roger laughed, "I'm sure you are! Now, I was told you're pretty resourceful, so I'm sure you'll be able to get by in the Grand Line easily by yourself. Time for you to get going kid!"

"Wait, that's all you're telling me?" Harry cried out in shock as the ground beneath his feet seemed to fall away. "Dammit, I need more to work with than that!"

He was falling, and Roger's laugh rang in his ears. It was a warm one, and he heard him say, "Find Ace. Portgas D. Ace."

The voice faded, and Harry was still falling. He felt like he was falling for ages – images flashed by his eyes in a blur of colour, sounds, scents and flavours rushed through him, all becoming indistinguishable as time passed. Finally, everything cleared, and he was surrounded by blue.

_Surrounded by blue…_

He was still falling.

Harry didn't have time to even consider pulling out his shrunken trunk and try to get his Firebolt out. He was falling much too quickly, coming up to meet what he realised was water. But wait, no, not water, there was something below him… a boat?

When he landed, it was surprisingly softer then he had expected. He managed to use his magic to slow his fall as best as he could, but the end result was still painful. Harry could remember the last time he'd fallen from a great height, and he had ended up breaking a lot of bones. He was only thankful that it didn't turn out like that this time.

Harry blinked dizzily and sat up from the soft thing he'd fallen on. The only sound to be heard was that of the waves crashing against the sides of the boat, and Harry looked around him in confusion.

There were a dozen or so men staring at him in shock.

Harry blinked. "Um… Hi?"

Silence, and then one of the men spluttered out in indignation, "That guy squashed our captain!"

Harry blinked again. "Huh?" He scrambled unsteadily to his feet, and looked down at the thing he landed on. The man was sprawled out and twitching, clearly unconscious. "So I did. Uh, sorry?"

And that's how Harry found himself in the position he was currently in. The men – pirate crew – had taken him by surprise, and tackled him to the ground, tying him up in the process. The captain woke up and started ranting about sneak attacks and failing and some other crap along those lines, but Harry didn't pay much attention.

When the other ship came into view, and the pirates started running around, screaming about 'marines', Harry decided simply: do the job, protect this 'Portgas D. Ace', then go home.

Lovely how things are never that simple.


	2. Of Pirates and Marines

**AN:** I was bored, so I decided to post this ahead of schedule. I was planning on updating this once a week at the earliest, but eh, what can I say?

No Luffy and Ace just yet, they're definitely going to be in the next chapter and everything will begin ;)

2

_(Of Pirates and Marines)_

Harry was very thankful of the fact that he had been forgotten. Sure, his pride was a little wounded at the fact that it had happened so easily, but he wasn't going to look the gift horse in the mouth. As soon as the pirates' attention was diverted, with a burst of wandless magic, Harry burst free of the ropes and apparated himself among the rigging of the ship. Now, he knew jack all about ships in general, but he was pretty certain he knew the names of at least some of the parts, and what would support him. He spotted the empty crow's nest and apparated there instead.

It gave him a great view of what was happening down below. The ship – an enormous warship, belonging to what the pirates were calling marines – was bearing on them quickly, and Harry knew that they stood no chance.

For the moment, Harry took the time to think over what he knew. Which wasn't much.

From what he could see, the technology wasn't that advanced, equivalent to that of the 1600s from his world. Harry didn't know whether that was a good or bad thing – around him, any form of electrical equipment just stopped working, so at least he could be assured of not destroying anything without his consent.

The warship was now beside the pirate ship, and Harry watched with curiosity as the battle broke out. He had to grip the sides of the crow's nest as the ship rocked back and forth violently along with the cannon blasts, and the wizard realised that he was in definite danger if he stayed there.

The pirates were losing, that was clear. His best bet was to hop on the marine's ship and gather as much information as he could – maybe find some high ranking officer and take the information from their mind. At that moment, he had to be thankful for his minor skills in Legilimency – even if he had to use his seals for a crutch.

That stint with Voldemort had done something with his mind. It had taken many insistent demands from Hermione for him to go see the healers about his complete lack in talent with the mind arts, and Harry had finally broken down. The healers discovered that having a foreign soul fragment imbedded in your mind can give you certain benefits and drawbacks. The good thing was that it enabled him to look through Voldemort's eyes without him being none the wiser, and a shared lot of abilities, such as Parsletongue. The drawbacks were the sheer amount of pain it put him through whenever Voldemort was feeling a heightened emotion, and eventually all the pain building up caused something in his mind to crack, making him unable to use the mind arts to their full potential and making somewhat… crazy, for lack of a better word.

Not that Harry called himself crazy. Just a little… different.

When he became a Seal Master, he'd designed a way for him to bypass any and all weaknesses, one of them being Occlumency and Legilimency. He'd learnt to shield his mind perfectly fine by himself, but going into other people's heads was another thing entirely.

He made his way onto the marine warship with little fuss, thankful he didn't have to use invisibility because everyone was simply too busy to pay much attention to him. He had to hand it to them though; they sure were good at following orders.

Who was he kidding – these guys were freaking morons.

Grinning, the wizard stuck to the shadows as he explored the boat, waiting for things to die down before he made his move. Men were running around in white uniforms, and Harry quickly snuck himself into an empty room. The sound of footsteps ran passed the door almost constantly, and Harry waited for the moment to strike.

The sounds died down, and soon there was only one set of footsteps. Harry braced himself, and when the footsteps got closer, he pulled open the door, grabbed the passing marine and dragged him into the room.

The man struggled, but Harry quickly placed a hand over his mouth and pinned him against the wall, sending a quick stunning jolt through him. The marine froze, staring at Harry with wide, panicked eyes, and the wizard found himself smirking.

"Don't worry," Harry purred. He delicately pulled off the glove on his right hand, revealing the glowing, seal covered skin. He pushed past the twinge of disgust that he felt, and pressed the palm against the marine's forehead. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want answers.

The marine officer's eyes rolled into his skull as Harry forcibly pushed himself into his mind.

Fragments of memories immediately assaulted him, but Harry shoved them aside and started digging for the information that he wanted. This was the easiest way to find out about this world, even if it was a bit inhumane, but the wizard couldn't care less at the moment. Being shoved into an alternate universe with no time to prepare made him a tad bit irritable.

Just a little.

He read through the information with ease, picking out what was useful and what wasn't. He skipped all the personal stuff – he, unlike certain past professors at least had some notion of privacy – and went straight to all the technical info. The information flooded his mind, and it took him awhile to gather it all into coherent thought.

_The World Government. Marines. Pirates. Great Pirate age, Gold Roger, King of the Pirates, criminals, bounties, executions… geez, this place seems advanced in some cases, but primitive in others. This 'Grand Line' seems like a strange place – islands with different seasons and magnetic fields, some so advanced it makes the muggle world look out-dated, and others still stuck in the prehistoric era. Mystical and mysterious happenings, no magic so to speak of and strange fruits that grant people strange abilities._

_Fuck, what the hell have I fallen into?!_

At least now he knew who that Gol D. Roger guy really was. Pirate King, huh? A man who literally turned the world upside down and greeted Death with a smile on his face. Harry could respect him, at the very least. There weren't many people who could send the world into chaos with a few words that held little truth to them.

But while he had a base knowledge now, he needed more information – preferably from someone who knew proper details.

He needed to find out about this 'Portgas D. Ace.' The marine knew nothing more than the fact that the man was a pirate, one with a pretty impressive bounty and rather infamous at that. While Harry found the monetary system in this reality strange, he supposed it wasn't that different than muggle currency. He guessed that 550, 000, 000 berris was a very large amount.

He allowed the marine officer – now unconscious – to fall to the ground and made his way out of the room. A quick 'obliviate' made sure that he'd remain undetected when he finally woke up, and with that done, Harry activated his invisibility cloak and strode down the halls. His destination was the captain's quarters, where he knew someone of higher rank would be, thanks to that officer's memories. Those with the ranks of Commodore and higher would have more of the information he was seeking, and the more information he had, the quicker he'd get this over and done with and he could go home.

Speaking of that, he was lucky his magic still seemed to work here at all. Magic – as an entity – is strictly tied with the earth. Even though every wizard and witch had their own magical core, they needed the earth to constantly feed it energy. Harry could only guess that this world had something similar, but instead of anyone being born with magic…

What? What was missing?

It was a puzzle, and if Harry had the time, he'd gladly have a go at figuring it out.

The fight had luckily stopped; the pirates that he'd landed on had apparently been defeated without a fuss, and the marines were settling down into a calm lull. He found the captain's quarters without a fuss, and entered it quietly. The officer in charge – a Commodore, thankfully – was asleep at the desk, and Harry had to wonder whether he had been like that even during the raid of the pirate ship. If so, who was giving the orders then? Either this ship was completely unorganised, or Marines in general were. He had to hope it was the former, if marines were the dominant force against criminal activity.

Stealthily, he snuck up behind the commodore and touched his forehead. A sleeping mind was significantly easier to sift through, and Harry sucked up the all the information he could.

All the knowledge of the Grand Line he absorbed easily, next was the World Government and what inner workings this particular Commodore knew, and then the pirates who held the highest threat rankings that he would –

Oh. Well fuck. Portgas D. Ace was currently within the World Governments custody and was scheduled for execution in a weeks' time.

He wished, for once, that things could turn out to be simple.

~O~

Perched among the rigging of the warship, absently throwing and catching a stolen eternal pose in his hand, Harry pondered his next course of action.

According to that Commodore's memories, Ace was currently imprisoned in Impel Down, the World Government's maximum-security prison, situated underwater in the middle of the calm belt. The only way to get there would be on one of those special marine ships that were able to travel through the still waters of the calm belt, but Harry dismissed that idea. The prison sounds as if it is near impenetrable, and Harry had little wish to brave its so-called horrors. The best way to get to Ace would be when they are moving him to Marineford for the execution, or get him while he's there. But both paths may prove to be difficult – it was near impossible to get on the ship transporting Ace, simply for the fact that he knew he would not be able to find the ship and get there in time; the entire thing was just too complicated for him to think about. Getting him at Marineford would be easy, if it weren't for the fact that they were openly provoking war with Ace's captain, Whitebeard, who just so happened to be one of the most powerful men in the world. Harry knew that that was a disaster waiting to happen.

Geez, what a mess he'd fallen into.

Harry pursed his lips and stared at the eternal pose in his hands. He'd swiped it from the commodore's cabin on the way out, and the label on it clearly read 'Marineford'. He had the heading at least, now he just had to get there. Hopefully, he'd make it in less than a week.

The question was: to use his broom or animagus form?

The broom would be quicker definitely, he'd be able to keep a constant eye on the eternal pose's direction, and he could easily turn invisible. The only problem was that it took a lot of energy to remain invisible, putting a constant strain on his magical core, and since he was in a different reality he had no idea how long it would take for the core to recharge, even with the aid of his seals. He had to be cautious.

The animagus form – while slower would be less inconspicuous. Sure, a giant black raven could make people look twice, but it was the grand line, and creatures like that existed all over the place. It put less strain on his magical core, and he would remain relatively unnoticed. The only problem was carrying the eternal pose. He could clutch it in his talons or beak, but it would be a right bitch to follow the direction it was pointing in.

The animagus form it was then.

The wizard's form shuddered, and if anyone happened to be watching him, it was like his body folded in on itself, black robes giving way to sleek black feathers. Large black wings beat the air for a moment to gain balance, and the raven steadied himself on his perch. Green eyes – definitely human – blinked at the change of perspective, and the pose clacked in between his beak.

Harry's animagus form had come to a surprise to those who knew what it was. Harry could understand that - ravens were widely associated with death after all, and the wizarding world was convinced that he was their saviour; born of Light and in servitude to Light.

Harry himself thought that the majority of the wizarding world's population were idiots. The fact that his animagus form was a raven came as no surprise to him. He was Master of Death, so it was only fitting he had a form associated with death.

His raven form itself looked like your regular, average one. Save for the fact that it stood at almost a foot in height with a wingspan that could put a condor's to shame. Hermione said that it shouldn't come as a surprise that he was five times the size of a normal raven – Harry was unique, after all.

She had wanted to study that 'strange anomaly'. Harry had politely refused and ran away from her as quickly as possible.

Pushing back relatively unpleasant memories, Harry beat his enormous wings and took to the sky, heading for Marineford.

~O~

**AN:** I've decided in this fic that Harry will be very powerful – however, even though he has power, he isn't all seeing, and will get caught up in a whole lot of trouble. More about Harry's past (besides what's already common knowledge) will be in the next chapter.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I really never expected it to be this popular XD

Pleeeease don't just favourite, reviews make me very happy! Its nice knowing what people think~!


	3. Of Flamingos and Ravens

**AN:** Holy hell, I really had no idea this would be so popular XD. This story is really fun to write, and I'm glad that so many people like it.

I know I said I was gonna have Ace and Luffy in this chapter, but I felt that it was best end it the way it is. The next chapter will be entirely dedicated to war (which is gonna suck, cause I'm really bad at action scenes), and Ace's rescue.

Also as a head's up, I freaking love Doflamingo. I foresee a whole lotta fun coming Harry's way because of him XD

I posted this right after I finished writing it, so if there are any mistakes, give me a heads-up please.

3

_(Of flamingos and Ravens)_

_It was an unfortunate accident on Harry's part. The job of a bounty hunter wasn't easy, and Harry had only been following said profession for a few months. Different Ministries from around the world were constantly hounding Harry for his 'expertise', and Harry was torn between feeling flattered and hassled. There were many people, who were shocked at his chosen profession, and many didn't support his choices, but Harry stood firm in his decision._

_The title of bounty hunter was a less offensive name for assassin. Or the other way around really. Harry had chosen it because the job of an auror was too clean. There just wasn't enough excitement and danger, too much paperwork to be bothered with, and Harry had never been too fond of following orders. He could have been a teacher – he was extremely good at it too, but again, not enough action. He didn't even consider any of the other department jobs available in the ministry. Being tied down to the British Ministry of Magic wasn't a very comfortable thought – even though he was on friendly terms with Minister Kingsley, the thought of anyone having authority over him just brought back bad memories._

_So the life of a bounty hunter sounded like paradise to him. He could be hired (on his own terms of course) to hunt down dangerous wizards and witches and criminals. He didn't discriminate in his targets, and in his first few months had already become quite infamous – more so than he was, and earned himself a fair few enemies._

_It was one such enemy that caused the unfortunate accident. _

_His target was a rising 'Dark Lord'. Rather pathetic in Harry's opinion. The man had a really small following to begin with – one that could barely be called a following at that and the wizard was already spouting ideals and beliefs and shoving them down other people's throats. Harry figured that there would be no need for much stealth – a simple barge in, kill things, collect the bounty's head, then get paid. Simple, easy to remember._

_Only the man was far more skilled then he had originally taken credit for. Harry shouldn't have been shocked, he should have remembered that nothing is ever as it seems, but he had gone so long without a worthy opponent that he didn't take the dark wizard seriously._

_Harry had taken to carrying all of the Deathly Hallows with him – the Elder wand in a holster on his left arm (his right was reserved for his Holly and Phoenix feather wand) – the invisibility cloak in his pocket, and the resurrection some on a chain around his neck, resting just above his heart. This was to prevent any others who know of them to try and steal them. By this point, Harry didn't know it was near impossible for him to die. He'd just thought he had a mix of rotten and extremely good luck._

_He learnt that the hard way when he fought that particular dark wizard._

_The man – quite older than him by a few years – was very fast and knowledgeable in hand to hand combat, and succeeded in disarming him of his phoenix core wand. Harry had no choice but to draw the Elder wand, and though the attacks were significantly more powerful, Harry was losing._

_And as all rising Dark Lords are, this one seemed very fond of the killing curse. It was an automatic response for Harry to throw up a shielding charm, but because there are no known spells that can shield from the Unfogivables, it shattered Harry's shield and started a very curious chain reaction._

_The killing curse first struck the Elder wand, causing it to shatter in his hands. In a blaze of green fire and pain, the very shards of the wand seemed to be absorbed by his skin. Next was the Resurrection stone – when the green fire enveloped his body, the sheer heat caused it to melt into his chest, just above his heart. Even now, Harry doesn't understand how the invisibility cloak disappeared from his pocket, but in the end, he supposed the ability to turn invisible at will was the result._

_Harry didn't die; instead, he became the Master of Death in more than just mere title. _

_It was because of the chain of events that Harry became a seal master in the first place. When the green fire finally subsided, Harry was left barely conscious with no visible injuries, and the wizard he had been fighting was left standing in shock. Pushing past his weakness, Harry hastily knocked the man out and went to the only one he knew he could trust – Hermione. The entire time, he felt out of sorts, hazy, and in pain, flickering in and out of visibility and letting of dangerous bursts of power. He could see things, hazy visions of people passing by, people who weren't really there._

_The end result was that he'd absorbed all three Deathly Hallows into his body. It was an interesting turn of events to say the least, but dangerous – both for Harry and people around him. The Elder wand was the most powerful wand in existence, and was damn near impossible to control in the first place. It meshing with his magical core caused his magic to become unstable in the most dangerous sense, causing random outburst of wandless magic, and no matter how hard Harry tried, he couldn't contain them. With the Resurrection Stone melted into his skin, there was no way to close the connection he now had with the spirit realm. He was in constant contact with both the dearly departed, and the dark things that lurked in shadowy reaches and borders. He could see the remnants of those left behind – not quiet ghosts, but shades, and sometimes these shades became dark, twisted things._

_Being able to turn invisible at will was the only thing that seemed like a blessing._

_Hermione knew basic seals, but she wasn't able to do more than create temporary ones that bound his magic for a few hours before wearing off. After weeks of research, they came to realise that seals were the only thing that could help Harry regain a semi-normal life. What followed was months of intense memorising and application. The Master of Death came to learn that seals could be used for just about anything, and decided to use it to his advantage. At first, he created the seals that would help him control his magic, since that was the most pressing matter. For the seals to be permanent, they had to be carved into his skin, and he'd had Hermione help when the pain became a bit too much. His hands, arms, chest, back, feet, legs and even his face were a network of scars by the end, forming a sort of cage to keep the magic bound into his body, and a few smaller, more complicated ones added for proper control. So long as he just didn't stop using magic, he would be fine. But the seals were a difficult thing to hide – they emitted a constant silvery glow due to the constant flow of magic that kept them working, and Harry found them to be ugly, disgusting. He was lucky that the seals on his face were easy to hide – a dash of muggle concealer and both the glow and scars were hidden. His body though was another matter – he now found he had to constantly cover his skin up, from booted feet to long robes and gloves._

_To join the lacework of seals on his chest was one to close the gate to the spirit realm. It was easy compared to the one containing the Elder wand's effects, and if he, for some reason, needed to contact the spirit realm, all he needed was a conscious thought to disrupt the flow of magic keeping the seals active and 'Hello spirit world'._

_All pressing matters out of the way, Harry was free to research seals to his own heart's content._

_Only now, Death had an unbreakable grasp on him, and would not let go._

~O~

Marineford was enormous.

It took four days for Harry to arrive at the marine headquarters, and that left three days for Harry to come up with a proper plan of action and gather more information. His flight was terrifying to say the least, and it was only Harry's quick thinking that allowed him to bypass the strange weather anomalies of the Grand Line. He was exhausted, and as soon as Marineford was in his sight, Harry swooped down and perched on a tall building. Hungry and tired, Harry decided to fall asleep right then and there, taking comfort in the fact that anyone who saw him would take him for a regular – albeit large – raven.

When he woke up, the sun was setting, and that was Harry's cue to start gathering information.

"Fuffuffuffu, what a pretty birdy."

The voice startled him. Startled him to the point where he had to struggle to gain his balance by flapping his wings, and he let out an indignant caw. When Harry caught sight of the thing – man – that startled him, Harry felt something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Deep, seated panic, with the slow stirrings of terror.

Ever since Harry became the Master of Death, he had an instinctual awareness of the presences of people around him – their life forces, if you will. For years he's never been startled by people trying to sneak up on him – assassination attempts were doomed from the start, and it made his job that much easier. Being in an alternate reality had not dimmed it either; if anything, it had become stronger due to his constant state of alertness.

But this…

Harry recognised him from the Commodore's – hell, even that first marine's – memories.

_Shichibukai. Seven warlords of the Sea. Allies of the Government. Dangerous._

_Donquixote Doflamingo._

The man was… tall. Really, really tall, his frame intimidating as he crouched beside the wizard on the edge of the roof. His flamboyant appearance should have diminished that – a bright pink, feathered coat, orange pants held up by a green belt, a white shirt with red flames hanging open to reveal a chiselled abdomen, and purple tinted glasses that hid his eyes.

His very presence was sinister and it scared Harry.

_How the fuck did he manage to sneak up on me?!_

The wizard turned raven sat frozen, his wings half open in preparation of flight, but he couldn't move. Every nerve in his body screamed at him to get away, fly away from the danger, but he just –couldn't – move – his – wings.

Green eyes remained locked on those orbs hidden behind purple sunglasses. Short blond hair ruffled in the slight breeze, and the grin the man was wearing widened.

Seconds pass and the Shichibukai threw his head back and let out a load laugh, one that sent a chill through Harry's body.

_Move dammit. MOVE!_

But his body refused to listen.

Still cackling, the blond pirate sat down next to him, leaving his long legs to dangle over the edge of the roof. Being this close to him, the wizard could feel a strange aura around him, but it was unlike anything he'd ever felt before. It was infinitely dissimilar to any regular human's presence and it caused Harry to wonder whether this man even _was_ human.

He lowered his wings and tucked them into his sides, regarding the pirate warily. Panic still lurked on the edges of his consciousness, but Harry pushed it aside. The pirate made now moves that indicated he wished to attack, so Harry stayed where he was.

_Damn my bloody curiosity._

Doflamingo let out an absent hum, white teeth shining in the setting sun. Then he started speaking. "You can feel it, ne? The tension looming over the horizon. The world as we know it is changing, fuffufuffuffu…"

Despite himself, Harry found himself enamoured in his words. Every syllable that left the Shichibukai's mouth was laced with an amused excitement, bordering on sadistic.

"The fun is just about to near. A season of war is coming, and those without the power to survive will be crushed with no mercy. Ideals will change and be put to the test, and I wonder… who will come out on top? There are greater powers at work than regular humans can comprehend, and death's shadow encompasses a great many individuals… Just watch, pretty birdy." Doflamingo turned his head to look at Harry, and deep within his soul, Harry knew that Doflamingo knew. Doflamingo knew that Harry wasn't an ordinary bird, and the panic lingering in Harry's mind grew. His heart beat rapidly in his chest, and his gaze was locked with Doflamingo's hidden one.

"A new era is coming."

With that, the Shichibukai leapt of the edge of the roof with another laugh, down into the alley below, his pink coat flapping around him, giving the illusion of wings. Harry remained frozen in place as he walked away – more like waddled, hands shoved into his pockets and grinning like a Cheshire cat.

The pirate's words resonated in his mind. _Ideals… Greater powers… Death's shadow…_

_A new ear._

Harry shuddered. For some reason, he felt that those words held more meaning than one would first guess. It raised even more questions than Harry could even begin to answer, and the wizard was starting to feel overwhelmed. Were all of the Shichibukai that unnerving?

Were all of them so… _knowing?_

Shaking off a sudden chill and pushing the encounter into the back of his mind, Harry looked around to see if there was anyone nearby – not seeing, or sensing anyone – Harry leapt off the edge and halfway down to the ground, transformed.

He landed in a crouch and grimaced as his sore muscles twinged. The first order of this was to change his clothing. From what he knew of Marineford, the city was the main base for the marines, and the city was full of both them, and the families of marines. There were a few shopping districts that Harry saw on his flight over, and he decided that the best way to start gathering more info was to blend in. Still hungry, the best way to go about starting would be going to an inn, bar or tavern. He had no money on him, but that was where magic came in handy.

Wandlessly, Harry transfigured his robes into what he had seen of this reality's naval fashion. A dark navy coat, similar to that of the pirate captain that he'd landed on, with a high collar and sliver edgings. A simple black t-shirt underneath and a green scarf around his neck to cover the seals, grey pants tucked into his knee-high boots, and a matching green sash. His gloves remained in place, and he swept his loose curls into a low pony tail.

He wondered absently if he should keep his glasses. Though he no longer had any need of them, it was habit more than anything that kept him from throwing them away. A part of him felt that he simply wasn't 'Harry' without them.

Scoffing at his thoughts, Harry jammed them back onto his face and set off in a random direction. No matter what happened, he had to fulfil his end of the bargain, and no strange, ominous speeches from creepy men dressed in pink feathers is going to change that.

~O~

_Three days_.

The chained man shuddered as the temperature around him seemed to drop. It was a subconscious thing, but ever since he'd had his powers cut off because of the accursed sea-stone, it was as if there was no heat in the world that could warm him. Even the blood that dripped from his wounds held no warmth.

It made him feel empty.

He didn't want to admit it, but the complete helplessness of his situation scared him. His death… was inevitable.

_And maybe that's a good thing._

There was a tugging in his chest, the tugging of a soul bond, and the man closed his eyes. It wasn't like his brothers – the bond that they shared had been present since they'd basically met – it was something completely new. It had appeared days ago, and he had no inkling as to what it could be. There wasn't anything he could do about though.

_Three days._

_Luffy… please don't do anything stupid…_

~O~

**AN: **Guys, I'm in a bit of a dilemma. This story can go two ways, but it all depends of one thing: Whether Whitebeard lives or dies. Basically, we I can stick mostly to cannon and have the Whitebeard crew go through the trauma of losing their father and nearly all hope, or I can completely shoot cannon to hell (well, more than it already has been) and keep him alive and leave the World Government completely screwed over.

So my dear readers, what's it gonna be?


	4. Of Shadows and War

**AN:** Urgh. This chapter was a complete and utter bitch to write. It only seems like I'm copying the entire war with only a few changes and it pisses me off. Also, I know that a majority of the readers of this fic want Whitebeard to live, but to be honest, I've hit a few snags going down that direction. I know it disappoints a lot of you, but Whitebeard's gonna die. If I allow him to live, this story cannot continue on the path I want it to and it would be significantly shorter. Whitebeard's death pretty much sparked a new era, thanks to his final words, and I can't just kill off Teach because his role hasn't been completely revealed just yet.

So sorry guys – only Ace is gonna survive.

But on a lighter note, thanks for reviewing the last chapter! I'm glad this story is so well liked and I hope it will continue like this XD. To be honest, I want to hurry up and get to the smutty side of things lol

**Warnings** for this chapter: War? Getting off on people dying? A crap-load of swearing? I may need to up the rating sooner than I thought. Hasn't been read through because it was pissing me off and I wanted it over and done with, so tell me if there are any mistakes.

4

_(of Shadows and War)_

_Death's shadow is looming on the horizon._

Harry was antsy. His entire form radiated tension as he crouched on a rooftop in raven form. Taloned feet clenched and unclenched as the minutes passed – the only sign of what he truly felt. It'd been a long time since he'd felt like this – apprehensive, waiting…

Ace's execution was four hours away. There was little Harry could do but wait.

The past few days at Marineford passed without a hitch – and with no more strange encounters with terrifying Shichibukai. He now felt as if he had more information on the Grand Line than most pirates did, but that was the only information he could safely research without gaining suspicion from the numerous marines that inhabited the city. He'd even managed to sneak into the main Headquarters, but found it to be too daunting. He hated how cowardly it made him feel, but when he first entered the large building he discovered he could barely sense half the people in there – and the half that he could sense were faint, almost as if they were blurred around the edges. It pissed Harry off to no end, but at least he discovered what the equivalent to magic was in this world, even if he didn't know the details.

It blocked people from his senses, depending on how strong they were.

As the days passed, he tried meditating and experimenting with his magic, just to see if it was possible to sense them. He compared it to a radio – his magic was on one channel, their strange abilities on another, and if he adjusted the frequencies just right then maybe, _maybe_, he'd been able to sense them. The only way he could do so, however, was to get a taste of that power, so to say. But that would mean confronting someone and that posed a rather unnecessary risk.

_The shadow is lengthening._

Harry shivered. He may not feel their presences, but he could definitely tell who was marked by death. It had left its special touch on a great many people, and it filled Harry with a disgusted pleasure. It made him feel sick, but at the same time made him want to shudder in ecstasy.

Movement caught the raven's eye, and he watched as dozens of marines started pouring out into the plaza, scurrying here and there to set up. The tenseness in the atmosphere tightened.

_So it begins._

Giants – completely different from what Harry knew them to be. Thousands of soldiers. The Admirals. The Shichibukai.

For a single moment, eyes shielded behind purple glasses met his and a grin was flashed his way, causing Harry to shudder.

_~O~_

When Ace was brought out onto the execution platform, Harry was taken aback by how young and _helpless_ he seemed. Sure, Harry knew he wasn't _that_ young, and he was a dangerous pirate, but seeing him in this light was a different matter entirely. The wizard couldn't sense him, which meant he had this realities power, but the scent of death emanated from his very being. Weighed down by sea-stone cuffs, shoulders slumped in defeat, eyes downcast, freckled face pale and grim.

He was ready to die. Death had touched him. Something in Harry's heart tugged.

_Not on my bloody watch_. _I didn't get sent here just to fucking fail and let you die!_

He could taste it on the very tip of his tongue, smell its thick stench in the air – its ominous, menacing manifestation greeted the wizard like an old friend, coaxing him into its chilling, pleasurable embrace, but Harry ignored it. He couldn't afford to give into death's haze. It always happened when a war was about to take place. Granted, the only time it happened was in the great battle of Hogwarts, right after he'd gained possession of all three Deathly Hallows. As people lost their lives around him, he's sunken into a delicious daze – he could tell when each individual soul had its life snuffed out, and it was by far one of the most pleasurable things he'd ever felt. He was now a being of death, and it was only natural that he'd get off on the very thing.

Another thing that sickened Harry. Deep within his very soul Harry hated being Death's dog. It had its benefits, but for the sake of his humanity, he's rather not be master of death.

He had no choice though. He was pretty sure he had no humanity left.

Shouting came from below, but Harry kept his attention riveted on his target. The young man was kneeling on the execution platform, two men bearing long swords on either side of him, and a little ways off, Harry recognised the fleet admiral, Sengoku. A sneer would have crossed his lips had he been in his human form. He had nothing against the man himself, but the very idea of the World Government pissed him off. Their sense of justice was as skewered as the people who headed the organisation.

Sengoku's voice cut through Harry's thoughts. "Tell them who your father is."

He saw Ace's lips move, recognised the words 'father' and 'Whitebeard'.

"Your father is the King of the Pirates – Gold Roger!"

The outburst that followed almost deafened Harry's ears. Ace looked down in disgust at the jeers and shouts emanating from the gathered marines, his teeth grit together, body trembling.

Harry drowned out the following conversation. The shadow of death suddenly became much heavier, and he had to struggle to keep a hold of himself and not fall into the trance. He cursed himself for not remembering this sooner and forced his Occlumency shields into full power. It managed to block out the alluring feeling, but only barely.

_If it continues like this…_

Suddenly, all sound ceased. Curious, Harry turned to the ocean and felt a chill at what he saw. Ships, dozens of them, _a fleet_, heading towards the headquarters at an impossibly fast pace.

_This is war_.

Harry turned his attention back to Ace; saw the shock on his face. It was clear he hadn't expected this to happen, and Harry understood. He was just one man after all.

But Harry also understood another thing. He didn't know the circumstances behind it all, but he knew actions spurned from love when he saw it.

This single man was loved enough to start a war over, and it filled Harry with a kind of warmth. For so long he'd lived through actions sparked by greed and malice, it was nice to see something sparked by the opposite.

But war is war after all, and fuck it all, but he felt like he was about to be sucked into death's pleasurable embrace.

If Harry wasn't a wizard and hadn't seen a lot of crazy shit in his life, then the enormous white ship erupting from beneath the water would have surprised the fuck out of him, but since that wasn't the case, Harry settled for being extremely impressed. Green eyes roved around, trying to spot the so called 'strongest man in the world', Whitebeard. And spot him he did.

Even though he emitted no identifying presence, Harry recognised him. The enormous man held an air about him that screamed power. Power had always attracted Harry – ever since the war with Dark Lord Voldemort, and it only added to Harry's sense of arousal. The tension in the atmosphere was about to reach a crescendo, and Ace screamed out to Whitebeard.

Blackness crept along the edge of Harry's vision, and abruptly the sounds of battle filled his ears.

_Screams. Explosions. Pain. Blood. Gun shots. Cannon fire. __**Death**_.

Harry was reduced to a shuddering mass, unconsciously returning to human form. He curled in on himself as waves of pleasure curled up his spine, making his pants uncomfortably tight. He scrambled for something to hold on to, his mind blank. _So many souls being extinguished… so good…_

Suppressing a moan, he clutched his head. Vaguely, he heard a familiar laugh and voice shout out, "Pirates are evil? The Marines are righteous? These terms have always changed throughout that course of history! Kids who have never known peace and kids who have never known war have different values! Those who stand at the top determine what's right and what's wrong! This very place is neutral ground! Justice will prevail you say? Of course it will! Whoever wins this war becomes justice!"

Harry couldn't help but let out a sobbing laugh. How right that damn pink bird was! Why couldn't he do anything?! He could stop this, stop all of the pain and death, erase death's shadow and leave nothing but the light of life, but that was impossible. You couldn't have one without the other, and he knew that intimately.

It was a scream that jolted him out of trance.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

Pushing himself up, the wizards eyes were drawn to the sky and his mouth fell open in a gasp. Since when did those walls of ice appear? And was that a ship falling from the sky? What the actual hell?!

Ace's name was still being yelled. The wizard zeroed in on the source, and in that brief moment he had to admire that set of lungs. The wizard refused to move, riveted in place as he watched a kid – a freaking _kid_, who couldn't be any older then eighteen at least – emerge from the water with the help of a fishman, call out to Ace (Luffy, the captured pirate screamed his name), stop an attack on Whitebeard (Crocodile, former Shichibukai, Harry recognised), then declare boldly, loud enough that the wizard could clearly hear, that he was going to become the Pirate King.

Another tug in his heart.

_This kid… has guts…_

_He's different. Everything about him is different compared to the others. Different like Doflamingo… Now that I think about it, Ace is the same._

Harry grit his teeth. He wanted to act now, but a large part of him told him to wait. He could feel the determination radiating off that kid Luffy, and he felt that interfering might just do more damage than good.

The wizard sat back, and decided to wait.

~O~

_There's no way this kid is human._

Disbelief constituted the majority of Harry's mind at that moment. This kid had blown every previous thought of strength from his mind. Never before had he encountered someone who showed as much single-minded determination of accomplishing their goal other than… well, himself. Green eyes followed the small figure as he dodged and weaved through attacks, being deterred by nothing – if he was struck down, he got up again. When he was injured, he brushed it aside.

Ace was screaming at him, telling him to stop interfering, throwing in a good few insults along the way. Luffy replied with as much vehemence, shouting that they were brothers and that he didn't care what Ace said. He'd save him, even if it meant Luffy died himself.

They were brothers? Adopted brothers, that's right. But this bond that he felt between them… It was more than just a brotherly bond…

More attacks. More defending.

Wait… what was going on… they were going to execute Ace early? Harry cursed and stood tall on the roof, getting ready to apparate. Damned if he was going to allow that to happen. _I thought the marines had more honour than that!_

But he needn't have worried. Just as he was about to turn on the spot, and the swords went careening towards Ace's neck, the soldiers are blown back by a wave of sand, and his gaze zeroed in on that former Shichibukai, Crocodile.

Harry was extremely close to throwing away what remained of his plans and just joining in on the battle. His stupid pride wared with his hero complex and was losing rather quickly. His nerves were extremely close to being shot to hell.

Harry closed his eyes and forced himself to sit down. He may have overcome death's allure, but it was still there, teasing the edges of his consciousness, begging him to give in. He forced a steady breath and reinforced his occlumency shields. Retreating in on himself, he could vaguely hear the sound of battle; just enough so that he could keep track of what was going on. Calmly, he steadied his place on the roof, ignoring the shockwaves that caused the entire island to tremble.

It was almost the proper time to act. If Luffy managed to reach his brother, then all he would have to do was make sure that Ace survived the escape. If Luffy didn't reach his brother, then Harry would step in and rescue the captured pirate himself.

He pulled of his gloves, ignoring the glowing seals, and stuffed them in the pockets of his coat. Standing up, feeling the wind howling around him, he watched as Sengoku once again ordered Ace's death.

_Not yet_.

The words were falling.

Luffy screamed out, "STOP IT!"

A beat, and wave of power crashed over him, knocking him to his knees. Shocked at the effect it had on him, the wizard watched as all the soldiers in Luffy's immediate area fell to the ground, foaming at the mouth and unconscious. The men who were to execute Ace were no different, and the swords fell from their slack grips with a clatter.

_That was it! That was the power!_ Excitement warred with apprehension, and still he watched as the next few events flashed through his mind's eye.

Luffy reached Ace. Sengoku went to stop them, but Luffy retaliated. A wax key slid into a lock.

An explosion of flame. It awed Harry, sent a chill through him, not unlike the one he got when surrounded by pure, unadulterated power. He heard Ace berate Luffy about never listening to what he says, but he could see the smile on his face.

Fire Fist Ace was free.

For a moment, Harry thought he didn't have to do anything. The shadow of death that marked Ace had faded, and whether he lived or died looked to be up to luck. The way that Luffy and Ace fought together was seamless, both of them fighting side by side, looking out for one another. They were going to escape.

They almost made it. Whitebeard was holding the marines back, and the entirety of Marineford was now in shambles, Harry left standing on one of the only buildings still standing. He took in the exchange between Ace and Whitebeard with a grim resolve. That man was willing to die for his 'family' to escape…

Harry had always been told – mostly by Hermione – that he was a self-sacrificing idiot. He'd given up on denying it as the years passed, so he understood the depth of Whitebeard's actions. He did not fault him for them.

Then one of the admirals – _Akainu?_ – appeared, and mocked Whitebeard and his crew. Harry saw the effect it had on Ace, watched as the resolve and anger tightened on his face.

_No…_ Harry shook his head in despair. _Don't do it you idiot…_

Harry acts a little too late.

As he gathered up hi magic to apparate, he appeared just a few feet away from Aces fallen form, ready to the attack in any way he could, but he didn't account for Akainu to change the course of his attack. Frozen in shock, Harry watched as the Admiral's magma fist flew towards where Luffy knelt on the ground. Ace reacted before the wizard did, and something in his chest shattered as the fist went through Ace's back.

It was pain unlike anything he'd felt before. Throughout the course of his life he had been unable to save a great many people, and always it managed to hit Harry hard. If only he'd been a little faster, a little stronger, then maybe things would have turned out for the better. The force of that feeling hit Harry harder than any past experiences.

He'd failed.

The world around him blurred, riveted in place as Ace fell limply into Luffy's arms. There was so much blood everywhere, surely it had to be impossible that the human body held so much? When Ace collapsed to the ground, and Luffy's shattered cry of agony pierced through the dazed, pained fog, the wizard felt a firm resolve.

In his heart, there was another tug. Faint, but still there.

_It's not over yet._

Harry raced over to Ace's collapsed form and skidded to a halt on his knees. Luffy's broken sobs were on the edge of his hearing, and as much as it hurt him to hear it, there was little he could do. The wizard raised gloveless, glowing hands, gathered the majority of his magic and will-power, placed them over the bloody hole on Ace's back, and _pushed._

There was a surge of magic that rushed through Harry's limbs, pooling into the gaping wound, and at that moment Harry realised that he was really the only thing keeping the pirate alive at the moment. Mere magic just wouldn't cut it, and his core was draining fast as the magic struggled against the call of death.

_Screw this!_ Harry thought furiously. _The title is 'Master of Death' for a reason, isn't it? I'm fulfilling a favour that YOU owe, and I am not going to fail! You do not control me! You will not win!_

_Don't die!_

There it was, weakly. A flutter of consciousness, and a choked breathe. The man's back heaved before collapsing back to the ground, and Harry made sure to keep his hands in contact with the pirate's skin so as not to disrupt the flow. His magic settled deep into the core of Ace's body, taking root and keeping what remained of his organs functioning. If Harry were to remove his hands before Ace was given any medical attention, then he would die.

_Over my dead, rotting corpse._

The battle continued around him, and Harry diverted his attention to the near comatose boy beside him. The boy's large brown eyes never left Ace's still body, and every breath that left his lips sounded forced and filled with tears.

The kid needed to calm down. Quickly.

"Hey, kid." Harry called out. No response, and Harry refrained from growling. "Oi, kid, look at me!"

Again, so response.

Muttering a curse under his breath, Harry removed one of his hands and reached out. Though the hand was covered in blood, Harry ignored it – he grabbed the back of the boy's neck and dragged him forward until their foreheads were touching, forcing him to stare into his eyes.

"Listen to me," Harry said lowly. He couldn't disrupt the flow of magic from both of his hands without cutting it off from Ace, but at the moment he ignored it. The flow of Magic entered through Luffy, and finally –_ finally_ – some life appeared in the boy's eyes. They widened, his sobbing cutting off, as Harry's green orbs bored into his. "Listen to me. Ace is still alive, he's not dead. I know what you're thinking and it is _not. Your. Fault._ Do you understand me?"

Luffy gulped and gave a shaky nod.

"Good. Now we need to get out of here, before we all get killed."

Yet again, that sounded a lot easier than it actually was. Luffy was clearly completely out of strength, and that fishman from before – Jinbei, now former Shichibukai if Harry remembered correctly – reappeared from keeping Akainu busy. The large blue fishman picked Luffy up with ease, and Harry calculated the best way to move Ace. Levitating him would interfere with the flow of magic, so he decided on carrying him in his arms to not jar any more of his injuries. It was awkward at best – the man was a little taller than Harry, and a lot bulkier, but the wizard managed – physically, he wasn't weak in the least.

He couldn't apparate with Ace either, so he had to settle to following Jinbei. It confused him somewhat that he wasn't being questioned in his actions, but he guessed that in the heat of the moment, if you were an ally then no one cared who you were. The entire island was trembling with constant tremors, and as they were heading toward the ocean, Harry was aware that they were being pursued.

_Of course, it had to be bloody Akainu, fuck!_

When Whitebeard appeared, vengeance radiating from his body, Harry couldn't have been more thankful. But the shadow of death encompassing the Yonko had darkened.

He was going to die. And Whitebeard knew it.

Yellow eyes met Harry, and a message passed between him.

'_I don't know who you are. I don't care who you are. You saved him. Thank you.'_

Harry swallowed a lump in his throat. He gave a sharp nod.

Whitebeard turned his back to Harry, bisento held tightly with one hand, and faced Akainu. The wizard took it as his cue to leave.

This just had to be one of those days. Murphy's Law definitely had it out for him. _Fuck you Murphy. _

_Tbc…_

**AN: ** I didn't want to leave it there, but I felt like things were diverting from what I wanted them to be, so the escape will be continued in the next chapter. And Ace, Luffy and Harry will have a proper introduction.

Review pleeease.


	5. Of Healing and Curiosity

**AN:** Sorry guys, but this is a shorter chapter then the others. I just had my last HSC exam and tomorrow I officially sign out of highschool, leaving me a free woman. Until I get a job that is. Not so sure about other schooling just yet. But anyway, the good news is that I have now officially planned out this story, yay :D By not giving too much away I can say that Harry (as well as, well, let's just call them 'added baggage') end up in Harry's world where a lot of confused shit will go down.

Sorry if the chapters not in top form - I hope you all enjoy at least. On a random note, I now cannot listen to any of Sonata Arctica's songs with picturing to Doflamingo singing them.

5

_(of Healing and Curiosity)_

Harry was very familiar with magical exhaustion. He'd fist felt it during the war with Voldemort; the constant running from place to place, never getting a sufficient amount of rest, never getting enough food, always on edge and aware of the fact that the next day could be his last. It finally reached its peak in the final battle of Hogwarts, and Voldemort fell dead at his feet. Afterwards he'd been so stressed out and drained of magic that he was in a coma for a month.

When he first started bounty hunting, his first major bounty went completely, utterly downhill. A lot of people died, and Harry was severely injured, his magical core almost completely drained - being outnumbered a hundred to one could do that to you. Not wanting to gain any more attention to himself and the botched up job where many more then the designated target died, Harry enlisted the help of one Draco Malfoy, healer-in-training. Of course the bastard was scornful and bitter throughout the entire exchange, but Harry knew that he'd keep his mouth shut – while they weren't friends, Draco owed a debt to Harry, and respected him at least.

So whenever Harry was in any need of medical aid, he went to Draco for help. Which was quite often. The Master of Death's magical core was much bigger than the average wizard, but Harry tended to put a lot more power into his spells, and when _The Incident_ happened, Draco was there, working alongside Hermione, trying to help. Harry was so very drained during that time, with random, powerful outburst of magic, putting himself and those around him in danger.

At least now, he'd learned how to control it. Refine it, so that every spell was full of overpowered doses of magic.

That fine-tuned control was put to use at that moment. But if he kept this up…

Harry believed he had a sufficient amount of proof that fate did, in fact, hate him. Skimming over all the crap that he'd been through in the past, the events that just took place had to definitely prove the previous statement true.

_Sure. Save one guy from death. Sounds simple and easy. Only no one mentioned a war, a crap load of enemies out for his target's head, and A PERSISTANT SON-OF-A-BITCH WHO JUST DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO GIVE UP!_

If the wizard wasn't steadily growing weaker and Ace's life wasn't dependent on the flow of magic that Harry forced into his comatose body, then Harry would have turned around and thrown an Avada Kedavra at that bastard Akainu with a whole shit-load of joy. He tried not to pay attention to the sounds of war going on behind him, he tried sticking with Jinbei's path to the water where a yellow submarine – _a freaking submarine, a yellow one at that -_ waited, but it was not to be. He didn't understand how the bastard Admiral escaped Whitebeard's wrath, and when said bastard blew a hole clear through Jinbei, hitting Luffy in the process, Harry didn't care. The wizard wanted him dead and ditched in a hole somewhere.

Luckily he didn't have any need to risk Ace's life any further when the former Shichibukai Crocodile showed up and diverted Akainu's attention. The pirate lord's words stung, even though they weren't exactly directed at him.

"_If you're going to protect something then do it properly! Don't let those bastards get their way!"_

So yeah, with the aid a floating clown missing the lower half of his body, Harry, a comatose Ace and Luffy, and a severely injured Jinbei, found themselves in the deck of the submarine.

Harry's vision was growing dark, but even still he held on. Bit by bit, the shadow of death encompassing Ace's form was receding, and the wizard feared that he wouldn't have enough magic in him to ensure Ace's safety.

But it had to be.

He heard the captain of the submarine speaking. It was vague, and all he got out of it was a name and profession.

_Trafalgar Law. Doctor._

Thank goodness…

The flesh underneath his hands stirred and Harry's foggy vision saw Ace's face twitch. A groan escaped his bloodstained mouth and he murmured a broken, "Luffy…"

_Luffy._

The pain in Harry's chest – something that the wizard realised not only belonged to him, but Ace as well – surged. And it dawned on the wizard that the pain didn't _just_ belong to Ace, but Luffy as well.

_How in the name of Merlin…?_

But Harry didn't have time to ponder it. When the pain doubled, Harry knew that meant one thing – Luffy was fading as well.

Questions appeared within Harry's mind that he didn't have the time to think about. This strange bond that appeared – whatever it was – could be questioned at a later date, preferably when both brothers no longer reeked of death. Disregarding all that remained of his self-preservation instinct, the wizard withdrew one of his hands from Ace and reached in the direction that he could _feel_ Luffy in. His blood covered skin met Luffy's and the surge of magic pulsed into his still form.

Harry was completely out of it by now. He could feel hands pulling at his arms, trying to get him to let go of the two unconscious boys, but a furious snarl left his lips, deterring them away. _Can't they see that I'm helping them?_

A coaxing voice whispered through his ears, and through the fog Harry recognised the words – _move, help them, surgery, let go - _ Harry shook his head, but allowed himself to be pushed to his shaking legs. They were moving, more like the wizard was pushed, and the two unconscious pirates were being carried by men wearing white boiler suits. His surroundings passed by in a blur, and it was all Harry could do to remain standing. Bit by bit his core was getting drained, and it wasn't the first time he was thankful for his abnormally large magical core.

The movement stopped, and Harry stopped with it, and with nothing to propel him forward he sank to his knees. He could feel rapid movement, probably the submarine moving through the water, but Harry paid it no mind.

He heard Law speak – to him. "The surgery's beginning."

The wizard gave a vague nod, and now knowing he no longer had to pay any attention to the outside world, drifted into his mind and focused on keeping Ace and Luffy alive. For as long as Law needed to heal them.

He had to.

The faint beats of two hearts beside his own was what kept him going. Weaker and weaker he grew, and it made Harry wonder whether his was what would make him die. So be it. He'd drain himself until he was nothing but an empty husk if it was enough to keep these two boys alive.

Hell if he knew why though. The thought of them dyeing caused the wizard suffocating pain.

He didn't know how long he stayed like that. Hours maybe, days maybe. When he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder, Harry didn't even have enough strength to raise his head from where he was slumped on the ground, hands still weakly grasping Ace and Luffy.

"Mr Green Eyes," Laws soothing voice caressed his ears. "It's done. They're alive. You can let go now."

Said green eyes fluttered open, taking in the sterilised floor beneath him. Warily, he tilted his head upwards and gazed into Law's tired, satisfied eyes. His gaze darted to either side of him, where the still forms of the pirates lay in beds with bandages wrapped around their chests. They were asleep.

Their hearts were beating strongly, life flowing swiftly through their veins.

The wizard licked his dry lips and croaked. "I see. That's good. That's really good."

And he promptly fell forward, unconscious, before the Heart captain caught him.

~O~

_Such a strange person._

Trafalgar Law was intrigued. Fascinated even. It had been a long time since he'd come across such an interesting number of people – one person in particular. Straw Hat Luffy and Fire Fist Ace lay unconscious before him after a gruelling surgery he himself had performed. They were defenceless, and if he so wished he could take them out now – two less obstacles blocking his path.

But he didn't make any move. No, he didn't want to make a move because his was all just too _curious_.

When he directed the two injured pirates onto his submarine, he hadn't expected a third element to appear, and what a strange element that was. This peculiar man, who held onto Fire Fist as if his own life depended on it, and then grasped Straw Hat as well, and before his very eyes he saw something impossible. At least, impossible unless someone had a devil fruit ability, but Law didn't think this was the case. Though it was possible he was wrong, he'd never heard of a devil fruit ability that allowed someone regrow completely melted tissue…

Adding in the glowing markings covering his hands and green eyes that radiated a knowing power, Law was almost positive that this strange man was not a devil fruit user.

He remembered, when he was about to start on Ace, certain that the man was too far gone, he witnessed every melted, burned, damaged _beyond repair_ organ slowly knit themselves back together. It was almost like…

Magic.

_How intruiging, Mr Green Eyed Magician._

Once every organ seemed to be completeley healed, all Law really had to do was stitch him back together. Whatever that strange man was doing was helping his progress along quite well, and when he moved on to Straw Hat, it was pretty much the same thing. Both would be scared heavily – whatever the strange man was doing only seemed to do so much – but they were out of the line of fire now.

As Law placed the unconscious man on a nearby by bed, he pondered what cards the anomaly would bring to table, so to speak.

A smirk crossed his lips.

~O~

Consciousness was sudden.

Harry thought that was strange. The weakness in his body told him that he was suffering from magical exhaustion, and usually when he woke up from the coma it induced, it was a long, painful process. First, he was aware of conscious thought. Then he could fell his heart beating, and feel his very blood rushing through his veins. Then he could feel his limbs, the stiffness they held, and the throbbing pain that laced through every muscle. His eyes would open, and usually, the light would blind him.

But this time, it was sudden, and he felt everything at once.

With a pained curse, the wizard forced himself into a sitting position and rubbed his forehead, tucking a few wayward curls behind his ears. He noticed that he was no longer wearing his glasses, and cast his gaze around, searching.

His search was halted when he saw the two unconscious pirates but a few meters away from him. His heart skipped a beat, jolting out of the harmony that was created by the two other steady beats that seemed to come from right next to his.

Discarding all pain and wariness, the wizard slid off the bed and stalked over to them, his heels clacking across the floor. He stopped in between the two beds, and made a face.

He realised then what the consequences of his actions were, and realised all chances of simply going home were completely shot to hell.

_TBC_

**AN:** Aaaaand the cliff-hanger. Can't say I'm sorry for ending a terrible chapter with a terrible ending. Eh.

You know the deal – tell me if there're any mistakes, what you like about it, how sucky it is, ect. Also, on the nineteenth of this month I'll be going away for about a week and I'm not allowed to bring a laptop because of my best friend/muse, so it's writing with the old fashion was for me. I'll have a chance to do a lot of it too, I think.

**ALSO!** I'm going to be posting some artwork and sketches to do with this story over the span of it being written, so if your curious, check out my Deviantart page. Or Tumblr, even though I have no clue how to use it properly. The links are on my profile page.


	6. Of Balance and Bonds

**AN:** Well, here it is! The last chapter before I'm shipped off to my forced holiday tomorrow, so I hope you enjoy. Again it's short, but at least it has some Luffy/Harry interaction. Since I'll be gone for an entire week, I'll most likely be reading, writing, and drawing when I'm not being cooked by the sun. So hopefully I'll have at least two chapters ready to post by the time I'll get back.

Sorry for not replying to any reviews, I've been so freaking busy

6

_(of Balance and Bonds)_

He'd always done it: rushed into something without sparing a thought for the consequences. Usually the bad luck that had gotten him into the situation would do a one-eighty and turn into good luck, getting him and whoever he dragged into the situation out unscathed. Hermione was almost always there for him, and in the past, Ron was with them as well. In later years, Luna was there to direct him with her 'intuition', and Draco was waiting to patch him up.

Now, it was just him. Though he knew what he'd just done, he had no way to go about fixing it.

He hadn't thought it was possible. He should have known that when magic was involved, anything was possible, and pretty much unexplainable.

Harry realised he was close to panicking, and forced himself to leave the two unconscious boys' beds and sit down on the one he woke up in. If anything, he had to at least calm down and try and work out the situation logically.

When he pumped his magic into Ace's body, theoretically he knew it would create a link between them that would allow the pirate to survive, even though half his chest had been melted internally. Pure magic, directed by conscious thought, also holds healing properties, so it was only obvious that it would repair at least some of the damage. What he hadn't expected was for Ace to have such a deep, soul bind with Luffy, and as a result, Harry's magic could sense what was happening to the kid, so Harry knew he had to do the same thing to Luffy.

All that should have done was keep them alive, and heal them if possible – at least enough to buy them time to get proper medical attention.

But no, his magic had to go and do something unpredictable, _unwarranted_, and more specifically, _unwanted_.

His soul was now bound to both Ace and Luffy, essentially making them soul-mates of a sort. In all of the wizard's years, Harry had never come across as incident such as this. He found himself wishing desperately that he had some way to contact Hermione, or rather, some way to get back to his world.

And now… He didn't know if he'd be able to go back at all.

There were two strong, steady heartbeats that he felt within his chest, in sync with his own. After only a short amount of time, they already felt like they'd been there his entire life and the feel of them brought him comfort beyond measure. If he wasn't inwardly close to being hysterical, he could close his eyes and drift into a steady meditation, simply by feeling it. He could centre himself, and let his magic stretch across the now invisible bonds that linked the three of them.

And with a jolt, Harry realised that was what he was doing. He focused on one – one that felt of fire and longing for freedom, and recognised it as Ace. He could feel a vague pain emanating from it, but Harry guessed that the pirate was too deep asleep for him to be feeling much of anything. Withdrawing from that one, Harry focussed on Luffy, and with a jolt, almost blacked out from the sheer emotion coming off of the boy.

_What the hell-_

'_pain, rage, sadness, self-loathing, helplessness, weakness, need to save Ace, have to save Ace, he'sallIhaveleftmyonlybrotherpl easepleasepleasedon'ttakehimawayfrommeAceIloveyo upleasedon'tdie-'_

With a shuddering gasp, Harry broke away from the link, and at that exact moment, Luffy's eyes snapped open. A ragged, wounded cry left his lips as the boy struggled to get up; eyes open wide, clouded and unseeing.

"_Ace!_" Luffy gasped. "_Where is Ace?"_

For a moment, all Harry could do was stare in shock. The kid was deathly pale, his face etched with pain and fatigue, but even still, he forced his trembling arms to hold him up. Nearly every inch of him was covered in bandages, and Harry had a feeling that if he kid kept moving around, they would soon be dripping through with blood.

Harry's eyes hardened and he pressed his lips together in a thin line. Bracing himself, before Luffy could further cause any more injury to his body, the wizard strode over and grabbed the young pirates wrist. The contact caused Luffy to flinch widely and he yanked his arm back, but even so, he now had his attention on Harry.

Before Luffy could say anything, Harry locked his green eyes with Luffy, causing him to freeze.

"You need to calm down." He began softly. Soothingly. "Ace is safe. He's alive, as are you. You're safe."

Harry could feel the blank state the boy seemed to fall into, and he was frozen as if he was under one of Harry's spells, eyes wide and only just starting to focus. The spell was broken in a moment however, when Luffy looked past the wizard and to the bed beside his own, where Ace lay. Despite his injuries, and the fact that he should not be moving _at all_, the pirate forced his body to move off of the bed, and on shaky legs, he staggered over to Ace. Harry didn't know what to do, other than stand off to the side and watch. He wouldn't stop Luffy from trying to affirm that his brother was alive, but if the pirate's strength gave out on them, Harry would be there to help.

Harry knew what I felt like to lose someone close to him. He knew what it was like to have people willing to die for him. He felt for himself – and had in the past – the guilt that sticks to him like a disease.

Harry had a lot of regrets. It was useless to wish to change the past however, because time – like magic – was fickle and ever changing. All he could do was try to make the best of the situation.

Now, all he had to do was explain the situation. This world was full of its own type of magic and mysterious happenings, so it shouldn't take much to convince Luffy, and Ace when he woke up. Harry had no idea how to break such a strong bond. He had no idea how to get back to his world. Those two pirates were stuck with him, regardless of their own desires and needs.

His curiosity also egged him on to find out what that strange equivalent to his magic is.

His decision cemented, Harry focussed on the two pirates.

Luffy was standing closely to Ace's bedside, his face a mix of guilt and relief – a strange mix, and Harry thought that the look didn't suit him at all. The boy's face seemed to be made for smiling, and for a moment the wizard found himself wanting to see him smile. Luffy's bandaged hands had reached out and were clutching Ace's tightly, and the younger pirate started shaking. With dawning horror, Harry saw tears fill his eyes and spill over the edge.

Harry didn't know how to comfort people at all – it so _was not_ his strong point, and he remembered that disastrous encounter with Cho back in his fifth year. He still regretted the fact that his first kiss had happened like that, but there was little he could do about that; he was young and stupid back then, so all he could blame was himself.

Throwing caution to the wind, the wizard reached out a hesitant hand and gripped the pirate's shoulder, and said pirate drew in a shuddering breath. The tears stopped, but Luffy didn't bother wiping his cheeks. He kept his hands wrapped firmly around Ace's, and turned those big brown eyes on Harry.

The wizard expected a lot of things. He expected to be questioned on who he was, why he was helping them, why he was there in the first place, what was in it for him, etcetera, etcetera.

He didn't expect the bright, sincere smile that was directed at him, and the breathless, sweet, "Thank you."

Harry was stumped. All he could do was blink dumbly at the pirate, whose smile never faltered. He swallowed the sudden lump he felt in his throat and licked his dry lips. "For what?" He asked numbly.

Luffy's smile didn't change. "You saved us, right?"

Blinking, Harry said, "I… I guess I did."

He'd been thanked so many times in the past that Harry thought he would be used to it by now. Usually, Harry just blocked it out – he didn't need the gratitude, nor did he want it – he was only doing his job. But this… the pure, nearly overwhelming gratitude that the wizard felt from the pirate caused his heart to pound in his chest and heat to surge up his cheeks.

Uncharacteristically abashed, Harry carded a hand through his hair – forgetting it was pulled back into a pony-tail and tugging a few curls loose – and walked back to the bed he woke up in and sat down. He could feel Luffy's eyes on him, and berating himself for acting like an adolescent, Harry met the pirates gaze. The gratitude was still there, but Harry could sense that it was quickly being overtaken by curiosity. He could smell the question coming from a mile away, and Luffy voiced it before Harry could say anything.

"Who are you? Why did you help us? Is there a reason? What happened after I blacked out? Where are we anyway? Are we on a ship? What are -?"

Harry was somewhat overwhelmed by the rapid-fire questions and quickly interjected before Luffy could say anything more.

"My name is Harry." The wizard simply said. "I'm here because I was sent here. We ran after you blacked out, and we are currently on a submarine captained by a man named Trafalgar Law, who happens to be the one who patched you and your brother up." Seeing Luffy open his mouth again, Harry added quickly, "I will explain more once Ace wakes up, but know this: I am your ally."

Luffy's head tilted to the side in a curious manner, and his eyes narrowed slightly. Harry held his gaze, and finally, after at least a full minute of not blinking, Luffy nodded his head. "Ok."

Harry's eye twitched. "'Ok'? That's it?"

Luffy blinked, "Was there supposed to be more? You already said you were an ally, and you said you'd explain once Ace woke up. You saved us, so you have no reason to lie, right?"

The wizard let out a sigh. "Right."

"Besides," Luffy grinned widely, and once again, Harry was stunned. "I feel like I can trust you."

Harry closed his eyes and drew in a shuddering breath, chalking the warm, fuzzy feeling in his gut to being a side-effect of the recently made bond. He had to make sure to keep himself as closed off from it as possible; there was really no way to tell how it would affect his mind, body, or magic, and he didn't necessarily want to find out either. But it was strange – even though he'd distanced himself from the two pirates he'd found himself bound to, it was like he'd become… balanced, in a way. Anchored. Almost like a part of him had been slowly drifting away, and with the two souls connected to his own, he was now held rigidly in place.

It felt… good, for lack of a better word.

Shaking away his thoughts, Harry hurriedly stood up and made his way towards the door. He needed to get out of the room, and away from the two pirates. He stopped with his hand on the knob, feeling Luffy's eyes boring into the back of his skull. Without turning around, he said, "You should go back to sleep, you shouldn't be moving around after being injured so badly. I'm going to see where we are and to speak with the captain. I'll… I'll come back with some food later."

Feeling like he was running away more than anything, Harry left the room and gently closed the door behind him. He realised he'd forgotten his glasses, but since he didn't really need them, decided he'd go without. He wasn't planning on going back in there any time soon, at least not until he was certain Luffy was back to being unconscious.

His stomach rumbled, reminding the wizard that he hadn't eaten anything for a good twenty-four hours.

So that was the first thing on his agenda: getting food in his stomach. Next, he was going to find Law, and get a few answers.

Then, explain things to Luffy and Ace – if he was awake.

Brilliant. He _couldn't_ wait.

Tbc

**AN:** Again, short, but that's to be expected. Now, off to mah holiday!

You know the drill: read, review, constructive criticism, ect.

Coming next – Harry and Law meet properly, same with Jinbei, and the Heart Pirates dock on the Isle of Woman. In comes Hancock!

_P.S – I didn't read over, I just posted as soon as I finished. I'll go through and edit all the chapters when I get back. Til then, later~!_


	7. Of Thoughts and Waking

**AN:** Well then. It's been a while. Hehe, please don't kill me.

I've been back from my holiday for two weeks, and I confess that I was procrastinating updating ATOS because I got a new toy: a Wacom tablet. I've been spending my time playing around with it and getting a hang of it rather than writing, but I never forgot about this. When I was away, I actually developed the storyline quite a bit, and I can only hope that you, my dear readers, enjoy it.

Also, I started watching Smallville and have become sorta addicted to it.

I want to thank everyone who reviewed, and I'm sorry I don't have the time to reply to each individual review. I also wanna thank those who wished me a good time on my holiday xD - I did in fact have a good time, and for those curious, it was 'forced' because my friends convinced me to go; I'm a very conservative person, and have never really left my house/city/general area for an extended period of time. But I did have fun, so it's all good.

I hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry again for the wait.

**7**

_(of Thoughts and Waking)_

Harry remained leaning against the door for what felt like hours. Thoughts raced through his mind, but they made little sense beyond the constant string of words: 'you are a fucking idiot, Potter.'

He'd barely even had a conversation Luffy and already he found himself more attracted to the boy than anyone else he'd met in his life, and somehow, that damn attraction had rubbed off onto Ace as well - whom he had no contact with when conscious. He tried to gather himself, silence his self-depreciating thoughts, but nothing could drown them out. He found himself wishing - not for the first time - that Luna had told him just a little bit more than she did, or that he'd been a whole lot more freaking careful, then he would not be in this mess at all!

But... there was no changing the past._ Heh, as if I'd actually willingly touch a time-turner again anyway._

Sighing, he straightened himself up and pushed off the door, walking steady steps down the hall to the nearest possible exit. There were no windows, so he had no idea whether they were still underwater, but due to the lack of movement he guessed that they had made port. There were no misplaced sounds - he could distantly hear waves crashing, the murmured voices of Trafalgar's crew - so that ruled out any attacks. They were safe.

For now.

_Well Roger, I completed your favour. Only now, I think that's not all you sent me here for, now is it? Question is..._

_What now?_

Swiftly he made his way through the halls to what he hoped was the upper deck. He passed a few of the crew members who stopped and stared as he passed, but Harry payed it no mind - he was used to being stared and whispered at behind his back. Being the Boy-Who-Lived, defeater of the Dark Lord Voldemort, and an infamous bounty hunter had many more drawbacks then perks. Many times his missions had been comprised simply because he was careless and was recognised; normal glamours didn't mesh well with him because nothing that simple could mask his magic and scar, but fortunately seals did a reasonably well job at that. It was such a pity that a majority of sealing knowledge was considered Dark magic, but once again, Harry had friends in high places, and he was very good at what he did.

It didn't matter if he'd lost a few people along the way because of his choices. He was of the opinion that if they didn't support his decisions then they just weren't good enough to be his friends. He'd been betrayed more times than he could count, so he was weary of whom he could truly trust.

_God damn it._

Muttering curses under his breath, Harry finally reached the deck and was unsurprised to see it empty. They were docked at a lush, forest covered island and the crew were gathered along the shore. Curiously, they didn't seem to stray far from the boat at all, and Harry wondered at that. Was the island dangerous? Where were they anyway? If he stood still long enough, he could feel a certain stillness in the energies surrounding him - he was becoming much more accustom to sensing it since Luffy had let out that powerful burst at Marineford, and now he could apply that vague sense to the world itself - not unlike back on his world where he could feel the energies that radiated off of Mother Gaia and flowed through every living being.

The sense of tranquillity filled him, and the wizard noticed the lack of any breeze. He realised then: they were in the calm belt!

Then this must be... It made sense. The crew - comprised entirely of men - were unwilling to step too far away from the submarine, like they were warned against it. Harry knew of only one island in the calm belt that warranted that reaction, and considering the Pirate Empress Boa Hancock had helped Luffy during the war, everything pointed to them being at Amazon Lily.

_I must admit Trafalgar, you sure do have balls._

His bad mood - not gone, but pushed aside for the vague stirrings of amusement he felt at their location, Harry made his way to the railing and surveyed the men spread across the ground. His eyes caught the familiar yellow hoodie that he recalled Trafalgar wearing, the black emblem stark against the material. Jinbei was sitting next to him, and they looked to be having a serious discussion.

Knowing that no one was aware of his presence just yet, Harry apparated from the submarine to the ground, three feet away from where Trafalgar and Jinbei sat. He knew he startle them, judging by the way Jinbei jumped to his feet with lightning-quick reflexes - surprising for one his size - and Trafalgar had his sword drawn, his hand reaching towards the wizard and his fingers spread wide.

_Well then._

Once they had seen who it was, Jinbei relaxed his stance but remained standing, clearly wary, but Trafalgar sheathed his sword, and smirk playing across his lips.

Harry didn't like that smirk. It reminded him of all the arrogant ones that crossed Draco's lips, and they always meant that there was something bad install for him.

"Well, Mr Green Eyes, you're up. I didn't expect you to be awake so quickly after you passed out." Trafalgar said, leaning nonchalantly against his sword.

_I didn't either. Then I've only been unconscious for a few hours...?_ "I heal quickly." Harry replied. He put his hands in his pockets and relaxed his shoulders, aiming to appear as unthreatening as possible. His gloves had disappeared somewhere during the aftermath of the war, and even though he was certain Law, and perhaps Jinbei, had seen his hands, he didn't want to draw any further attention to them. He kept his gaze steady with Law's stormy grey eyes, showing that he wasn't intimidated in the least.

Something changed in the pirate captain's eyes, and Harry recognised the look; intrigue, and just a hint of respect.

"Now that is interesting Mr Green Eyes. Would you mind telling me who you are?" Law asked.

Harry considered the question. "Not particularly. But I don't really want you to keep calling me Mr Green Eyes, so you can call me Harry."

Law nodded. "Harry then. I want to thank you for keeping Fire Fist and Straw-hat stable during the time I operated on them. That was a rather interesting ability; tell me, is it the result of eating a devil fruit?"

The wizard's eyes narrowed. Straightforward, but polite; the wizard wondered whether he should tell them the truth or just say yes. He shrugged and said, "You could say that."

_Yes, stick with the short responses. Maybe if I keep it up without me having to be downright rude._ It was just his first impression, but Harry rather liked Trafalgar Law. The man had a certain darkness lurking in his eyes that Harry recognised as belonging to a man with a dark past and many secrets. But he sensed no subterfuge, or desire to hurt – but a willingness to do right.

But Harry could be completely wrong. No one accused him of making particularly bad decisions in the past, but things happened.

_Sirius…_

Shaking away the dark thoughts, the wizard asked before Law could speak again, "What happened after we got on your sub? I realise we're at Amazon Lily so I assume Boa Hancock has something to do with it."

Law sighed but smiled, looking very tired suddenly. He hid it behind a mask of smirking indifference, but Harry saw it clearly. "We managed to get away with no subsequent damage or casualties, and the Pirate Empress gave us safe harbour under the condition of my crew and me not going any further inland than the shore – until the point where Straw-hat Luffy and Fire Fist Ace are healed. Then we are to leave. Unfortunately we have had no news of what transpired after we left, but what I do know is that Red-Haired Shanks and his crew arrived to put an end to the war."

A part of Harry wished he had been there to see it. He'd heard all sorts of rumours about the Yonko, and by meeting Whitebeard he knew the title was nothing to laugh at. Red-Haired Shanks sounded like a very powerful man, and it was said that he was once a member of Gold Roger's crew. The question was, why would a pirate want to stop a war between another Yonko and the Marines? What was in it for him?

Pushing the questions away, Harry hummed in consideration. Maybe, once he knew for sure that Ace and Luffy were safe, he'd make his way back to Marineford and piece together what happened. But maybe that wasn't such a good idea – his face was probably well known to the marines by now, and he didn't want to risk running into any powerful members.

Or any of the Shichibukai who decided to stick around. Mostly he wanted to avoid Doflamingo, since his last encounter with him had rattled him deeply. What the hell was up with that giant bird man anyway?

His stomach growled, reminding Harry why he was there in the first place.

"I don't mean to cut our meeting short, but I came here to get some food for Luffy and Ace-" _and me_. "Any idea where I can get some?"

Law looked reluctant but pointed of in a random direction, and Harry followed with his gaze. There was a giant cart full of various meats and fruit, and Harry wondered how he'd missed it in the first place.

"A few of the Amazon's dropped it of a little while ago, but my crew and I are not to touch it because the Pirate Empress specifically said it was for Straw-hat. Which is ridiculous, there's no way he'd be able to eat it all."

_I'm not so sure about that. Something tells me that Ace and Luffy eat quite a bit._

Dismissing the silently watching Law and Jinbei, Harry withdrew one hand from his pocket and summoned some magic to the surface. Staring at the food and ignoring his glowing skin, the wizard cast a silent levitation charm and summoned it over to him. A great deal of the surrounding pirates became silent and stared at the phenomenon with wide eyes, and Harry ignored them. Turning around, Harry made his way back to the submarine.

He walked swiftly, focusing on the clacking sound his heels made on the wood and metal to clear his mind. Idly, he summoned an apple to his hand and proceeded to munch on it. He wondered what he was going to tell Luffy, and Ace when he woke up.

Maybe the straight truth would be the way to go. _Hell, with this soul bond I don't think I could even lie._

There was a flutter in his chest, followed by a slow tugging, dragging with it the sensation of waking up. He felt a vague stirring of emotions that didn't belong to him, and Harry concluded that Ace had finally woken up.

Harry's steps faltered. His appetite left him abruptly, and he banished the apple in his hand. Bracing himself, he forced his feet to move again and made his way to the infirmary. There was no use in delaying the inevitable, and Harry was certainly no coward. He came to the closed door and rested his hand on the handle.

Taking a deep breath, Harry pushed it open and stepped inside, bringing the large amount of floating food with him.

The sight before him caused warmth to spread through his body, starting from his chest where his heart fluttered lightly. Luffy was laying on Ace's bed on his side, his arms wrapped around Ace and his face pressed against his chest. Silent tears were streaming down his cheeks, matching Ace's drawn, tired face. The older pirate had a hand gently carding through Luffy's hair, and Harry could hear him murmur soothing words to the younger pirate.

Suddenly feeling like he was intruding, Harry prepare to back up and come again at a different time, but before he could move, Ace looked up and his eyes locked with Harry's.

_Well now I know I'm fucked._ The wizard thought with resignation as a strange feeling engulfed him.

Tbc

**AN:** Ugh I know it's short but I wanted to get this out without any more delay. Something is better than nothing, right?

No Hancock this time, but she'll appear hopefully next chapter along with Rayleigh, and then the story will really get moving. Ace is awake now, so look forward for some interaction with Harry ;)

Til next time, read and review!

P.S. OMG over 200 reviews! You guys have no idea how freaking happy this makes me!


	8. Of Magic and Truth

**AN:** Omg guys I am soooo sorry for the extremely late update. I hit a block and life just kept interfering and I'm just really really sorry. Pleeeeeease forgive me!

And I really just want to thank everyone who's read, reviewd and favourited – it means so freaking much to me. If you want updates on what I'm doing and the like (as well as fanart!), you can follow me on tumblr; the link is on my profile.

Also, sorry for any mistakes – I decided just to run it through a quick spell check and post it just after I finished writing it.

8

_(of Magic and Truth)_

Once, there was a time when Harry thought he was straight – completely disregarding the sexual tension that was the embodiment of his and Draco's teenage years. He'd dated women, had quite a few serious sexual relationships, and most of all he _liked_ women. He liked soft skin, mouth-watering curves and breasts just as much as any other bloke.

Unfortunately, women didn't exactly like him the same way. His name, wealth, and power is what drove them to him, and in the end, it was the only thing they saw. Then there was the fact that in nearly every serious relationship he'd had, his girlfriend/potential wife inevitably tried to kill him.

It was like he was a magnet that drew in wannabe black widows.

So after a good few years, he'd sworn of women, and started looking at the same sex. He quickly came to the conclusion that he liked the same sex just as much as the opposite sex, and in the beginning he thought that maybe, _just maybe_, he could have a decent relationship where his partner didn't try to kill and/or extort him.

He was so very wrong. A lot of the men he went out with just didn't seem to get him, just didn't want to commit, or, again, wanted him for his fame and money.

He'd loved a good deal. And had his heart broken a great deal.

Hell, he even slept with Malfoy at one point, and both vowed that it was to never get out or be re-done. Ever.

So for the last few years, Harry swore off any relationship with another person. His hand became his best friend, as sad as it sounds, and he was lonely. He accepted that he was doomed to live the rest of his undetermined life-span alone.

He hated it when he got false hope. The scene before him and the feeling in his chest gave him so much, and he wished so desperately that it would disappear.

It was a wish that would never come true.

Ace's eyes remained locked on his own, wide with curiosity, warmth, and a little bit of protectiveness. It wouldn't have been obvious to the naked eye, but Harry had been reading people and their intentions since he could walk. The bond between them amplified his abilities – and the wizard wondered whether Ace or Luffy could sense it as clearly as he could; if they could understand the depth of the situation that Harry had unwittingly dragged them all into.

Would they resent him for it? Hate him?

Or would they… accept it. Welcome it, even?

The wizard forced his mouth to move. "So you're awake. I'm glad."

Ace's gaze never faltered, and his smile gained a little more warmth. He replied, "I guess I have you to thank for that."

Harry dipped his head in acknowledgment. He averted his gaze to Luffy, who was staring at the wizard with his mouth agape. Was that… drool?

"FOOD!" Luffy cried out and immediately escaped from Ace's loose embrace. The pirate was in front of Harry in seconds, arms stretching out and snatching random pieces of food from the air, all the while babbling away, "This is so cool! Are you doing this? Is it a Devil Fruit ability? What else can you do? Can you make me float? Can you make yourself float? Wow, that means you'd be able to fly! That is so cool! What-"

He was abruptly cut off by the sound of loud laughter. Harry was startled to the point where he almost drew his wand on reflex, but minutely relaxed when he saw Ace. The injured Pirate was letting out deep chuckles that caused something warm to bubble in Harry's stomach. His cheeks were a bright pink, causing the freckles to stand out, and for the first time, the wizard noticed how attractive he was. The realisation caused unwelcome heat to surge to his cheeks.

"Oh Luffy, don't ever change," Ace laughed. He trailed off into soft giggles, and Luffy's smile was as bright as ever.

Harry didn't like how out of place he felt. He didn't like it at all. He really wanted to be out of here, before any more attention was brought towards him and before he got in any deeper.

"Hey, what's up with those markings?"

_And Luffy's curiosity will be the death of me._ Harry flinched and curled his hands into fists, struggling not to shove them into his pockets. The damage had already been done – Luffy was staring at Harry's hands, random scraps of food stuck around his mouth from where he's scarfed it down. Almost lightening quick, the Straw-hat Pirate grabbed one of Harry's hands and held it lightly in his own, his eyes reflecting the softly glowing light.

The wizard really wished he knew what happened to his gloves.

The pirate's hands were warm against his cool skin and his fingers traced on of the many interwoven sigils. Harry's breath was caught in his throat, and he almost tugged his hand away when a pair of near burning hands grabbed his other one.

Ace was standing beside Luffy, examining the hand with the same intensity. His face was drawn and pale – clearly the movement hadn't agreed with him, and Harry felt a rising anger in his gut.

"What do you think you are doing?!" The wizard spluttered. "Neither of you should be conscious, let alone moving around!"

But he didn't draw his hands back. He could only remain frozen as the two pirates mapped out the markings with their eyes – almost like they were hypnotised.

"I've never seen symbols like this before," The oldest pirate murmured. "I've travelled through the Grand Line and all of the Blues and I don't recognise a single one."

"Maybe Robin will know," Luffy said happily. "She knows, like, everything to do with writing and symbols and stuff."

"Did you even hear what I said?" Harry snapped. "You both nearly died!"

Finally Ace looked up, his eyes catching Harry's. His voice was calm, a smile playing on his lips as he said, "But we didn't, and we have you to thank for that, don't we?"

The wizard's lips thinned into a straight line. He'd have to tell them – the phantom fluttering of the twin hearts beside his own were strong and steady, proof that they were alive. The warm hands cradling his own furthered it and Harry let out a shuddering sigh.

"I… I have to explain things to you, yeah? I will, just, please – sit down and eat something before you both collapse and die on me."

Luffy shrugged and released the hand, grabbed a few more bits of food – mostly meat – and jumped back over to Ace's bed. The Whitebeard pirate gave him a considering look before copying Luffy's actions. He took a seat beside his brother, who leaned lightly against him, with both pairs of eyes fixing on Harry.

The wizard breathed a steadying sigh and grabbed another apple, taking a seat from Luffy's vacated bed. They ate in silence for a few minutes, with Harry ignoring the way the two pirates wolfed down their food as if it was their last meal. The remaining food floated over to the cot Harry woke up on and settled there.

The wizard banished the apple core with a flick of his wrist, ignoring the pirates staring, and started speaking. "I told Luffy when he woke up that my name is Harry. I was sent here to save your life, Ace, and that in turn extended to Luffy. We are currently docked at Amazon Lily on Trafalgar Law's ship."

"What happened at Marineford?" Ace cut in. "I remember… trying to stop Akainu, but after that…"

"You had a hole blasted through your chest." Harry said bluntly. "Things were even more chaotic after that. I didn't stick around, you were unconscious and dying, Luffy was out of it, and I had to get you both out. I didn't stick around long enough after that."

"What about Whitebeard?" Ace looked so earnest and, frankly, worried. Harry wished he knew the answer.

"I don't know. But under the circumstances… I don't know. He was willing to die to allow us to get away. All I know is that not long after we got away, Red-Haired Shanks arrived and stopped the fighting."

"Shanks?" Luffy grinned. "I wish I could have seen him again!"

Ace's face was blank. "You said you were sent here. By who?"

_Great. Here comes the hard part._ "The thing is, I'm not from this world – don't interrupt me!"

Luffy's mouth closed and he pouted.

"I know this is going to be hard to take seriously, but please, just listen. I'm from what you would call a parallel world. You know what I'm talking about?" Ace nodded but Luffy looked blank. Harry sighed. "I never was good at explaining this shit. Think of your world as one reality that exists alongside billions of others, sometimes with similar timelines and events, sometimes with completely different ones. I'm from one that's completely different – the world I'm from has a setup of different oceans and continents."

"So you're an alien?" Luffy asked.

"No I'm no – fine. Yes, I'm an alien."

"That is so cool!"

"Shut up and let me speak. You can think of me as an alien, but really I'm the farthest from that. My reality doesn't have devil fruits or that other strange power – though it is a very close match."

Ace frowned. "Other ability?"

"The one that Luffy used."

"The what I used?" Luffy looked confused.

"You mean Haki?" Ace supplied.

_Finally a name to put to it!_ "Yes, that."

"What's Haki?"

"Shut it Luffy, let him finish."

"But seriously, what's-"

"Both of you shut it!" The pirates fell silent. "Thank you. Anyway, instead of Devil Fruits and Haki, we have magic. There's no real definition for it, other than that it can be manipulated to perform supernatural feats. I'm a wizard. I use magic. Usually, wizards and witches need wands to manipulate magic, but due to a… series of unfortunate events I don't need one. These symbols?" Harry held up his hands. "They help me use magic without a wand."

"So what can magic do?" Luffy's eyes were wide with excitement.

Despite himself, Harry smiled. "Pretty much anything the imagination can come up with. No one really knows what limits magic has. Travelling between realities was supposed to be impossible, yet here I am." The wizard's smile dropped. "Which leads me to where we are now. The region that I am from is run by the Ministry of Magic, and there is a sub-group called the Unspeakables, who run the Department of Mysteries. That place is full of secrets and 'impossible' things – and one of those things is known as the Veil of Death. At first, people thought it was a gateway to the afterlife, but in reality it's a gateway between worlds.

"You could say I was… called to it by a powerful force. There are things at work that I can't even begin to comprehend. I did not know where I was going or what I was doing – I took a leap of faith. There was man a waiting for me there. A dead man."

Ace's eyes narrowed. "Who?"

"You're father. Gol D. Roger. He asked me to help save his son from an untimely death, and against my better judgement I agreed."

Ace was shocked, his freckles stark against his pale skin, while Luffy was silent, wide eyes alert and watching. Harry remained silent as he waited for Ace to compose himself. Finally, after a minute, the pirate asked, "Why you? Why did you agree?"

The wizard gave a bitter smile, "My friends say I have a hero complex. I don't like standing by and allow bad things to happen to good people. I'm also very good at helping people. Though in this case, I don't know whether I just made things worse."

Luffy frowned, "What do you mean by that? You saved our lives!"

"And what, doomed you to a fate of living forever? Of being bound to someone who's not even human?" Harry snapped. "You feel it, don't you? The sensation of two hearts beating alongside your own. It wasn't supposed to happen like this!"

"What did you do to us?"Ace sounded – not angry, like Harry would have expected – calm, and curious. Luffy was nodding his head enthusiastically as he shoved a slice of bread in his gob.

_These people…_ Harry shook his head in disbelief. "When I reached you, you were practically dead, Ace. It takes power –_ so much_ power to keep a dying man tethered to the living world, and the magic I used… it _did something_. I had to get you and Luffy out of there, but Akainu was chasing us and Luffy got hurt. You two share such a deep bond – one that goes beyond friendship and brotherhood – and with both of you faltering My magic created a bond between us – one that is unbreakable, even in death. _I forced a soul bond_."

**Tbc**

**AN:** Sorry for the shortness and the cliffy as well. I'm trying not to be bad, really I am.

I'll really try not have another several months gap in between updates. I really out of practice with writing this.


	9. Of Falling and Emotion

**AN: **I'm back again guys!

Again, thanks to everyone who's reviewed, favourited and followed. Much to my surprise, this is my most popular story – and I honestly have no idea why. In my opinion nothing interesting's even happened yet xD I'm sorry if I haven't been able to reply to any reviews and I'm sorry for that, but I just seem to get so many of them I lose track!

If you want to contact me and such, send me a message on my tumblr – it's basically my life-line, and I post practically everything to do with my stories there – including my art. Since this fanfic profile is my secondary one I only ever log into it to post new chapters. And reply to reviews when I can.

I've received a few questions about Doflamingo and whether or not this will be m-preg. To the first one: Doflamingo will play a pretty moderate sized role and his motives and such will be revealed later on in the story, and to the second one: No, this will not be m-preg. I do not mind it much, but it has no place in this story. The rating will go up and there will eventually be some graphic sexual content though.

PS – to those who also read Fragments of Affection, I'm sorry to say that it is put on hold, and has been for a while. I will get back to writing it eventually, but right now I'm focusing my current four projects.

Again, a rather short chapter, but at least we're now getting somewhere. It's un-edited, so sorry for all of the inevitable mistakes xD

9

(of Falling and Emotion)

It was, of course, Luffy that spoke first. Through a mouthful of food. "Wha's a shoul bon'?"

Gritting his teeth, Harry crossed his arms and awkwardly took a seat on his cot. He tried to calm his rapidly beating heart, but to no avail. Slowly, he began speaking. "A… A soul bond is exactly what the name implies: a bond between our souls. Once made, it can never be broken, even in death. We're tied together… forever."

"Doshen't shoun' tha' ba'." The boy way still bloody chewing his food.

"I wasn't finished. A soul bond has to be agreed on by all parties – to force one on someone without consent is a grave sin. Those that are soul bound can feel anything the other is feeling. You can't lie, and you most certainly can't hurt them. Friendship nearly always evolves into something more. What's even better is that if one of them dies, the other is usually soon to follow, and then in the next life or wherever the hell you end up, you'll meet each other again, then shuffle and repeat." _Also…_ "And if one of them is, say, immortal, then the other one will be too."

Ace almost choked. "Are you saying your immortal? That's pretty hard to believe."

The wizard gave a bitter smile, "Well, no matter how many times people have tried to kill me, death never seemed to stick. I'm not human, Ace. Not anymore at least. You don't have to believe me. But you can tell I'm not lying, can't you? You can feel it, deep in your heart."

Ace's face was blank, and Harry was starting to get the impression that despite the cheerful face the pirate put up, underneath he had an intelligent, cunning mind.

_Hard to tell if he would have been a Slytherin or a Gryffindor._

The two held eye contact for all of about thirty seconds before Ace smiled. "You saved our lives," he said. "This soul bond doesn't seem like a bad price to pay. Besides, you didn't mean for it to happen, right? And you're immortal – we can't die then. I see this as a kind of win-win situation; don't you think so, Luffy?"

The straw-hat pirate nodded eagerly. He'd finally stopped eating and was smiling widely. _Does he even understand what happened?_ Harry thought.

But there was a knowing look in his eyes, and yes, Harry affirmed. _He does._

"So what does that mean for us now?" Ace stood up from the bed slowly, obviously trying not to jolt his injuries too much, and with a growl, Harry stood up, stormed over to the pirate and pushed him back down.

"Now, what you need to do is _stay in bloody bed and let yourself heal!_ And you!" Harry whirled and stalked over to Luffy. "You may not have been as badly injured, but you exerted so much energy that realistically should have put you unconscious for a good week! You aren't to do anything else until I have Law look over both you, am I clear?"

A laugh came from Ace's bed, and Harry scowled at him. "I mean it! Don't make me cast a spell on you to make you stay put."

"Yes, mother hen," Ace chuckled. "We promise to stay in bed until we are looked over."

Harry glared. "Good. I'll be back in a few minutes. Do not move."

o.O.o

Once Harry had left, Luffy – disregarding Harry's words bounded over to Ace's bed and burrowed under the covers next to him. Ace's hand went up to his hair and ruffled it softly.

"A soul bond, huh." Ace lay back next to his brother and cast his eyes to the ceiling. "What do you think, Luffy?"

Luffy hummed. "He called himself a monster, but his eyes are sad. I don't think a monster could have eyes that sad. He saved our lives, and he saved you. I like him."

"Hmm. So do I."

They lay in silence for a few moments, and Ace thought that Luffy had dozed off when he came out with, "Hey, Ace?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't be caught by the marines again, ok? You said you wouldn't die, but you almost did."

Ace shifted around until he was on his side, and found Luffy staring at him with dark eyes. It was seldom that he saw his brother this serious, and Ace found himself smiling gently. He lifted the arm he wasn't leaning on and wrapped it around Luffy's waist, drawing him into a tight hug. "I don't plan on it, Lu."

Luffy gave a small, relieved laugh. "Good."

They lay in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. A lot had seemed to happen in only a few short hours, and now that they finally had a break, the memory of past events seemed to creep up on them.

Though Luffy hid it well, he was a wreck. Ace could feel it – there was something there that wasn't before, linking him, Luffy, and that strange man Harry together. It was strange – he could sense what they were feeling, but he wasn't experiencing it himself. Almost like he was the audience to a play. Alongside Luffy's turmoil, he could feel Harry's emotions as well – though not as clearly. Being what he was, he probably had some way to shield himself somewhat. Though they weren't easy to distinguish, a mass of it was what Ace could recognise as guilt.

That was something that Ace just couldn't really grasp. What did he have to feel guilty for? He'd saved their lives. He wondered how many times he would have to tell him that before the wizard started believing it.

Ace didn't know what he himself felt. Truthfully, he felt numb. He wanted to know what had happened to his fellow crew-mates and Whitebeard… What had happened to him?

He refused to dwell on the worst possible scenario. They were all strong, capable fighters who could each hold their own in battle.

He'd have to wait and see.

o.O.o

When Harry reached the shore again, It was to see a bunch of new-comers had arrived.

The wizard instantly recognised the beauty that was Boa Hancock, and had to admit his heart skipped a beat. It wasn't often that one came across such beauty, even in his world, where there was pretty much an enchantment for anything. She was with a party of other women, and appeared to be arguing with Law, Jinbei, and a man with white hair that Harry didn't recognise – at first. It took a moment to place him, and when he did, his paused in shock.

Silvers Rayleigh, former first-mate of Gol D. Roger.

Now that was a surprise. He wondered why he was here – surely it had something to do with Ace and Luffy.

The wizard continued on his way. The closer he got, the easier it was to distinguish Hancock's ranting, and from what he gathered it had something to do with wanting to see Luffy. Law was calmly trying to explain that it was currently impossible because Luffy was still unconscious and needed his rest. Harry could tell though that he was quickly getting annoyed, because Hancock was simply refusing to listen to him. Jinbei and Rayleigh stood off to the side, watching but not interfering.

_Time to step in then._

"You can't see him yet," Harry cut of the Snake Princess' tirade. "He's in a critical condition right now and needs rest. I suggest you leave now and come back later."

He came to a stop beside Law and adjusted his glasses to a more comfortable position.

Hancock became silent, staring at Harry with wide, angry eyes. "Who do you think you are, man? What makes you think you can tell me what to do?"

Harry smiled pleasantly. "I didn't tell you to do anything; I only suggested you come back later."

"You…" She started shaking with rage, "You dare-"

"That is enough." Rayleigh stepped forward and placed a hand on Harry's shoulder, who stiffened a little. He could feel the power thrumming through the man's body at that brief contact. "Pirate Empress, please return to your duties and allow Luffy and Ace their rest. You may come them tomorrow, depending on whether they are well enough to take visitors."

Hancock had a scowl on her face that did nothing to diminish her beauty, but she conceded. "Very well then, I shall be back tomorrow." she gave Harry a disgusted glance and turned away without another word, her entourage following in her wake.

A childish part of Harry wanted to stick his tongue out at her back, but he refrained. He had some dignity left.

Rayleigh's hand left his shoulder, and the wizard turned to him in curiosity. If there was anything he had learnt to respect over the years it was aged people whose power had not diminished at all. Though Dumbledore had made his share of mistakes, in the end Harry still had to respect him for all that he'd done. Rayleigh had similarities, but from what the wizard could tell, did not have Dumbledore's manipulative nature – and that set Harry at ease.

"You must be the man that saved Straw-Hat Luffy and Fire-Fist Ace." Rayleigh held out a hand, and Harry shook it without hesitation. "I must thank you. Neither of them need to have died."

"It was never my intention to let them die," Harry nodded in acknowledgement. "I was doing my job."

Rayleigh let out a considering hum. "Mind telling me why saving them was your job."

His demeanour remained open and cheerful, but the aura about him suddenly became threatening. Harry schooled his expression into a sweet smile and didn't back down. "That remains between me, Ace and Luffy, Silvers Rayleigh. If you desperately wish to know then speak to them, but otherwise I will not speak a word."

Rayleigh kept eye-contact with the wizard for a moment, before his smile grew a little more genuine. "Very well then. You know my name, but I don't believe I know yours…"

Taking the invitation, Harry said, "Harry. Just Harry."

"Just Harry," Rayleigh repeated. The wizard got the sense that the former-pirate was going to say more on the subject, but he never did. Instead, he said, "You did a good thing at Marineford, Harry. And I bring news. I need to speak to Luffy and Ace."

_He's asking _me_ for permission?_

Harry just nodded his head, and turned to Law, who was watching with intrigued eyes. "Luffy and Ace are awake; I need you to check them over before they hurt themselves even more."

Law smirked and nodded, "I was just going to do that – besides, I need to give Mr Straw-hat this," Only then did Harry notice the straw-hat in Law's tattooed hands. The wizard had wondered briefly where it had gotten to, and now he has an answer.

He focused his attention on the bond for a moment – he could feel that Luffy's emotions had calmed significantly since he'd left, and Ace was worryingly blank.

_Shock. It has to be._

Remembering suddenly, the wizard whirled on Rayleigh and demanded, "What happened to Whitebeard?"

The ex-pirate's expression was grim. "He didn't make it."

_Ace…_

With a sigh, Harry turned to make his way back to the ship. "Let's go."

o.O.o

Harry made sure to knock on the closed door and wait a few moments before entering. For all he knew he was interrupting a private moment and he didn't want to cause them any due stress. He entered, with Law and Rayleigh following him, and let out an annoyed sigh when he saw Luffy sitting beside Ace on his bed.

"I told you not to move," he grumbled, and had to look away from Luffy's blinding smile. Ace chuckled, and then paused at the sight of Law and Rayleigh.

"Ace, Luffy, good to see you again," the former pirate came forward and sat on the edge of Luffy's empty cot. "I just have to say that you are both very lucky."

"Long time, no see Rayleigh," Ace said dryly.

"It has been a long time, hasn't it? You look even worse than the last time I saw you!" Rayleigh chuckled. "Same with you, Luffy. To be honest I'm surprised you both made it out alive."

"Well, we have Harry to thank for that." Ace stated.

The wizard pursed his lips ad refrained from commenting. He silently took a seat on his free cot, listening intently to the ongoing conversation. Luffy started speaking at a rapid pace – and just as he let out an exclamation of delight as Law handed over his straw hat, Harry's vision turned gray.

Their voices became distant and muffled, almost as if he as hearing them through a wall, and a sinking sensation grew in the pit of his stomach. He panicked, his magic rose to do – _something – _and everything went black.

He felt like he was falling. He could hear and see nothing, but the sensation was very strong – it was hard not to imagine that he was falling into a dark abyss, and the fear that accompanied it was almost crippling. The sensation was very familiar – just like when he first fell into this world, it was almost as if something was pulling him back out. He wanted to scream, he wanted to use his magic to stop it all, but he was… almost impossible.

For the first times in _years_ he felt powerless.

But he struggled. Past the fear, he could feel something tugging at him, drawing him down with even more speed, and he dug deep into all the reserves he had, sucked up all the magic he could into a ball, and hurled it at the link connecting him to whatever it was that was pulling him.

It hit.

The collision was explosive, and he was released.

The falling sensation ceased, and Harry was cast adrift.

He didn't know where he was. He didn't think he was in his physical body – most likely his mind and soul had been pulled free, and with nothing left to anchor it, it was just… drifting. He'd used a great deal of magic to destroy the link, and now he was tired and drained.

_How… the hell am I supposed to get out of this mess?_

He'd worry about how he got in his current position later – now, he just needed to find a way back to the physical plane. He had an inkling that his current position was one of the many thousands of realms between his world and the world his body was in, and he realised distantly that he was pretty much well and truly fucked.

On one hand, he could wait until his magic reserves have restored somewhat, and then try and catapult himself in a random direction in hopes that he could find his body. He could feel it faintly – right on the edge of his consciousness, but it was so, _so_ far away…

_Wait, that's not my body I feel_.

The sensation of two hearts beating alongside his own…

Luffy and Ace.

_How in the name of Merlin…_

They were very far away, but he could feel them. They were a beacon and a helping hand, reaching out to him and guiding his way. All traces of exhaustion became forgotten, and the wizard gathered up the remnants of his reserves and propelled himself forwards.

He flew through the empty black space, knowing and feeling that he was getting closer. Time had no meaning – he could have been falling for years and reaching back for mere minutes, but he was getting there.

They were two bright specks in the black. Like stars, burning bright, calling him home.

_The bond…_

He was there. He became aware of his body slowly – he was warm, comfortable, and he knew instinctively that he was safe. Two pairs of hands clutched his own, sending a soft, roiling heat through his limbs.

He was awake. He was back in his body. He was drained.

He blinked open his eyes to see two pairs of worried ones blinking down at him. He heard one of them speak – Luffy, he thought – but the voice was different and he couldn't distinguish the words.

_So tired…_

Harry managed to give a reassuring smile, and then he was out like a light.

**TBC**

**AN: **Well, only a three month gap between updates this time – that's an improvement, right?

You know the drill guys – I promise I'll try to reply to reviews!

Remember – if you want to question me about something, come to me on tumblr.


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